Ninja Love
by MisterAnimeFan
Summary: Naruto and his friends take a trip to Disneyland. While there, Neji and Shikamaru decides to have a little challenge. NaruxHina SasuxSaku NejixTen ShikaxIno. AU-ish...Please R&R! REWRITE FINALLY FINISHED Sept 22 2010!
1. Arriving at Disneyland

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

Hey everybody, this is MisterAnimeFan here (formerly know as narutofreak14), here with another new fanfiction from yours truly! Well, technically this isn't new. "Ninja Love" was one of my first fanfictions ever on fanfiction dot net. It told the story of Naruto and his friends going to Disneyland. It's amazing that this story is three years old! Looking back, I definitely improved on my writing skills.

So, I decided to go back and sort of redo the story. The main storyline is still there, but I'm just going back and filling in plotholes of the story, fix grammar and spelling mistakes and maybe add a few rides.

**SUMMARY: **Naruto and his friends take a trip to Disneyland. While there, Neji and Shikamaru decides to have a little challenge. NaruxHina SasuxSaku NejixTen ShikaxIno. Please R&R.

**PAIRINGS:** Naruto x Hinata, Sasuke x Sakura, Neji x Tenten, Shikamaru x Ino.

**PLACE: **Disneyland Resort

**NOTE: **All characters are about 17 or 18 years old. I apologize for if there is any OOCness. Being the Disneyland fanatic I am, I tend to be very specific about the attractions, sometimes to the point where they take up the whole chapter.

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**KONOHA VILLAGE…**

It was an orange-lit afternoon in Konoha Village. Naruto Uzumaki, a young, blonde-headed teenager was walking back to his home after a long day of doing menial missions for the village. He was exhausted and he couldn't wait to get into bed and rest up.

"Ah man, what a day," Naruto muttered to himself. "You think that doing a bunch of lousy D-ranked missions wouldn't tire you out to a point of exhaustion."

He then arrived at the front door of his apartment. "Aw…home sweet home," Naruto said, relieved. He then noticed something sticking out of the small mailbox on the wall next to his front door. "Huh? What's this?"

Naruto pulled out said mail and looked at it closely. He opened the envelope and looked inside. It was a colorful flier with mouse ears and a castle in the background. Naruto read the flier:

"_Dear reader, congratulations! You and ten of your friends have an opportunity to win a free trip to the Disneyland Resort!"_

"Wow! Are you serious?!?" Naruto asked, happily. "I get a free vacation!"

And the rest was history…

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA**

Fast-forward to today. The sun was shining in Los Angeles, California. There wasn't a cloud in sight. It was a beautiful day. Naruto and his friends were waiting by a nearby bus stop, waiting for their ride to their hotel. Naruto had invited his teammates Sasuke and Sakura, his girlfriend Hinata Hyuga, her teammate Kiba (with his dog, Akamaru), her cousin Neji Hyuga, Tenten, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji.

Naruto, Kiba, Choji, and the women were excited to go to Disneyland. They continued discussing about what they wanted to do. Sasuke, Neji, and Shikamaru, however, were sitting on a steel bench, all three of them just wanting for the trip to be over.

Naruto couldn't help but notice the three. His mood eventually turned sour. "Hey Naruto, what's wrong?" Sakura asked.

"Why did you invite Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"What's wrong with Sasuke?" Sakura asked. "You said you needed ten people. I thought Sasuke should come."

"Yeah, but it's actually all of these guys. Sasuke's so pessimistic, Neji's a boring jerk, and Shikamaru's a lazy bum! I can't imagine any of them having fun at Disneyland."

"Don't worry. I'm sure they'll come around and have a good time."

Eventually, the bus arrived. Everybody got on-board and the bus began its trip to the Disneyland Resort.

While on the way, everyone sitting up front filled the air with the sound of excited chatter. Shikamaru got up from his own in the front seat and walked to the seat next to Neji in the back of the bus. "Hey, do you mind if I sit here?" Shikamaru asked. "Everybody up front is being annoying. I just want some peace and quiet."

"I guess," replied Neji. Shikamaru then took his spot next to Neji. "So, how did you get dragged onto this trip?"

"Naruto told Tenten, and Tenten told me. I didn't want to do it, but I figured that since Rock Lee wasn't going to come, I can use this trip to have some time to myself."

"Huh, that's strange. I thought that you went because you and Tenten want to have a romantic trip together."

"Romantic trip?!? What makes you think that?"

"I thought you and Tenten were a couple."

"Of course not. Tenten is not my girlfriend! She's just my teammate."

"But she's pretty cute, isn't she?" asked Shikamaru.

"I don't think of her like that!" Neji shouted, angrily.

"So you think she's ugly?"

"Umm…well…I admit she's…very attractive…I guess," admitted Neji. "But what about you and Ino?"

"Why the hell would you pair me with Ino?" asked Shikamaru. "I mean Ino's loud and annoying. She and I would never have a happy life together."

"Hmph, I guess you can't be a genius at everything."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You don't understand women Shikamaru. You don't want to work to find out about women, so you just label them as troublesome and call it quits."

"Hey, I know women very well. I can make Ino fall in love with me…if I wanted to that is. That's more than I can say about you and Tenten."

"Tenten and I work very well together. It's not that hard to make her fall in love."

"It's starting to sound like a challenge," said Shikamaru.

"Okay then, whoever gets the girl first gets bragging rights," proposed Neji.

"You're on." Both Neji and Shikamaru shook hands in agreement.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Everyone soon arrived at the Grand Californian Hotel, which was built inside Disney's California Adventure theme park. Out of the three Disneyland hotels, the Grand Californian was the most beautiful (and most expensive).

After they got settled in, everyone began walking over to Disneyland Park. Sakura noticed that Sasuke was silent. "Come on Sasuke, you should happy. You're on vacation!" she said, trying to break the silence.

Sasuke said nothing. Sakura then tried something else. "Is there any ride that you want to go on first?" she asked.

"Well…Space Mountain is supposed to be something worth seeing. Everyone says that ride is so much fun, so…I want to ride that first and see what the fuss is all about," said Sasuke.

"Good idea, we should go on Space Mountain first!" shouted Naruto, happily. Everyone agreed, although Hinata was a little nervous.

After going through the turnstiles, they walked down Main Street USA and headed over to Tomorrowland. Kiba was wearing black sunglasses, pretending to be a blind man. This was just so that he could sneak Akamaru into the park. "Do you think Space Mountain will be crowded?" asked Ino.

"It's a new ride," Neji said. "I'm sure it will be swamped with people right now."

"It would be a drag if it was," said Shikamaru.

"It's only 25 minutes after park opening. It should have a short wait," Tenten said.

Soon enough, they saw the Space Mountain sign in the distance. To everyone's dismay, the waiting time for the stand-by line was posted at 75 minutes! "Great, only 75 minutes," moaned Sasuke, sarcastically.

"I guess we're not the only ones who want to ride," commented Kiba.

"Well, that must mean it's a popular ride," said Sakura.

While everyone was talking, Naruto was looking at the park map. He then read a small section about it. It was about the FASTPASS system. "Hey guys, check this out!" Naruto shouted.

"Just give us a minute, Naruto," replied. Sasuke

"So, does everyone still want to wait in line?" asked Choji.

"I'm not waiting in a long line for some short roller coaster ride," complained Shikamaru.

"Come on Shikamaru!" Ino said, angrily. "Can't you do something without complaining?"

"Don't worry, I got an idea to bypass the line," Shikamaru whispered to Ino.

"We should just get in line anyway," proposed Neji. "The line is probably not going to get shorter than this."

"You're probably right, Neji. Besides, the ride should be worth the wait," said Tenten.

After discussing it, everybody began to walk up the ramp towards the beginning of the line. Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Ino were left behind at the base of the stairs.

"But guys," Naruto said again. "We don't have to wait in line, we can just…"

"Look Naruto, if you and Shikamaru don't want to ride, then you don't have to!" interrupted Sakura. "Just wait for us at the exit. Let's go, guys." Everyone then continued walking up the stairs. "Guys, listen to me!" shouted Naruto, as they were climbing the stairs.

"Let them figure it out for themselves," suggested Shikamaru.

As everyone was walking up the stairs, they were confused by the lack of people. "I think the computer wrong," said Choji. "There is nobody in line."

Soon, they reached the second floor, where hundreds of people were waiting in line. "Oh my!" exclaimed Sakura, surprised at how so many people were in line.

"Look at all of these people in line for this stupid thing," complained Neji. "Are we still going wait in line?"

"There's nothing we can do now," answered Sasuke.

"I hope you guys have something to preoccupy your time," said Sakura.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Meanwhile, Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Ino were still at the entrance of the attraction. They watched as the waiting time changed from 75 minutes to 85 minutes! "Wow…these guys are sure going to have to wait for a long time," commented Shikamaru.

"Even I won't wait that long for Space Mountain," added Ino.

Naruto turned to Hinata. "Hey Hinata, I haven't heard you say anything yet. Do you want to ride Space Mountain?" asked Naruto.

"No!" she shouted, surprising everyone around her. "I mean, uh…at least not yet. I just ate breakfast and I-I would h-h-hate to lose it on a roller coaster…a very fast roller coaster…in the dark."

"Well, we'll have to use FASTPASS," suggested Shikamaru.

"FASTPASS?" asked Hinata and Ino.

"FASTPASS is something the park created so that way people won't have to wait in line for the popular rides," explained Naruto. "It's in the park map."

"I'm guessing that's what you were trying to tell everyone else?" asked Shikamaru.

"Yeah," answered Naruto.

"Ah well, this is something they'll miss out."

"How does FASTPASS work?" Ino asked. "Cause I surely do not want to wait in some long line."

"Here, we'll show you," said Naruto. Shikamaru and Naruto dragged Ino and Hinata over to Space Mountain's FASTPASS distribution center.

"See, all you need is your park ticket," began Naruto. Hinata and Ino then give the two their tickets. "First, you put your ticket in the machine," continued Shikamaru, inserting his ticket into the machine. The machine then gave him another ticket. "Then, it will give you another ticket, a FASTPASS ticket. It'll have a one hour time period. If you come back during the one-hour time period, you will get into a shorter line."

Right now, it's 9:18 a.m. The FASTPASS return time is between 10:10 a.m. and 11:10 a.m. "This is genius!" Ino shouted, happily.

"But what are we going to do while we wait for the ticket to start working?" asked Hinata.

"We can go ride the other rides," suggested Shikamaru.

"Yeah! Hey Hinata, let's go on that one ride you wanted to go on," said Naruto.

"Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters?!?" Hinata asked, excitedly.

"Yeah, let's go!" Naruto said.

"You guys go on ahead," Shikamaru said. "I have another ride in mind for me and Ino."

Naruto and Hinata then hurried over the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. "What are we going to do?" Ino asked.

"Just follow me," Shikamaru said.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto and Hinata arrived at the entrance for Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.

Astro Blasters was an imported ride from Walt Disney World. It's a new attraction made for the 50th anniversary. When they got there, it was only 25 minutes.

Once they got inside the building, Naruto and Hinata heard a distress signal over a giant walkie-talkie. They then entered the briefing room, where Buzz Lightyear explained everything to them.

"_Welcome, junior rangers. It is important that you understand your mission," _the giant Buzz Lightyear said to everyone in line. An Etch-a-Sketch was there to provide a visual explanation. _"The Evil Emperor Zurg is stealing all of the crystallic fusion cells from the world's toys. I and my comrades will infiltrate Zurg's fortress. You will go in and blast all of Zurg's minions. To help you, I have marked all of Zurg's minions' weak spots with Z's."_

Red lights started blinking and an alarm sounded. _"Battle stations! Report to the launch deck for immediate boarding. To Infinity and Beyond!"_

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**Meanwhile...**

Everybody was still waiting to enter the Space Mountain building. They were all bored and growing impatient. Choji was eating away at his bag of chips. Neji looked over at Tenten, who was looking out towards Tomorrowland. She saw Ino and Shikamaru walking towards the lagoon. "I wonder where Ino and Shikamaru are going," Tenten said.

"Who knows?" Neji replied. "There is a submarine ride across from here. I know Shikamaru would like something like that."

Suddenly, Tenten whipped her forehead. "Phew, it's hot today," she said.

"It is pretty warm out today," agreed Neji.

"You think they could add more shade to the waiting line," complained Tenten.

Neji then pulled out his park map. He waved the map at Tenten like a fan. Tenten sighed at the cool breeze. "That actually feels pretty good," she said.

"_This is good. Do something nice for the girl_," Neji said. "_I bet Shikamaru can't come up with something like this._"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

At Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, Hinata and Naruto were about 5 minutes from boarding their space cruiser. "We're almost there," said Naruto. "Oh and Hinata, if I beat you, don't worry, I will still love you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"Well, you can't throw. Remember at ninja practice, you tried to throw a kunai at me and you missed and hit an innocent squirrel? A squirrel, Hinata!"

"I bet you that girls are better than boys at aiming."

"You're on!"

They soon boarded their space cruisers. When they got to the first room and the laser guns started working, they immediately blasted away. After the first minute, Hinata was beating Naruto. Not because she was good, but Naruto sucked. He was still trying to learn how the equipment worked. At the end, Hinata won 25,609 to 11,325 points.

"Alright I can't believe I won! In your face, Naruto!" she gloated. Naruto was trying so hard not to laugh. Hinata then started to realize how much of a fool she was like. "I'm sorry, Naruto." She said softly.

"It's okay. I kind of like that. I've never seen that side of you," he said. Hinata and Naruto smiled about it before moving on to the next ride.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **So, here is the first chapter of the rewritten "Ninja Love". I added an introduction and gave Neji and Shikamaru a much more valid reason for their challenge. In the next chapters, I'll add some attractions that weren't around back in 2006 (such as Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and Toy Story Mania).

I don't know how often I'm going to add to this story, but it should be pretty often since I only have to change up a few things here and there!

**Next time:** Star Tours, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, more Neji x Tenten and Shikamaru x Ino, and Space Mountain…


	2. A Race Through Space

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

Hey everybody, this is MisterAnimeFan here (formerly know as narutofreak14), here with another new fanfiction from yours truly! "Ninja Love" was one of my first fanfictions ever on fanfiction dot net. It told the story of Naruto and his friends going to Disneyland. It's amazing that this story is three years old! Looking back, I definitely improved on my writing skills.

So, I decided to go back and sort of redo the story. The main storyline is still there, but I'm just going back and filling in plotholes of the story, fix grammar and spelling mistakes and maybe add a few rides.

**SUMMARY: **Naruto and his friends take a trip to Disneyland. While there, Neji and Shikamaru decides to have a little challenge. NaruxHina SasuxSaku NejixTen ShikaxIno. Please R&R.

**PAIRINGS:** Naruto x Hinata, Sasuke x Sakura, Neji x Tenten, Shikamaru x Ino.

**PLACE: **Disneyland Resort

**NOTES: **All characters are about 17 or 18 years old. I apologize for if there is any OOCness. Being the Disneyland fanatic I am, I tend to be very specific about the attractions, sometimes to the point where they take up the whole chapter.

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**DISNEYLAND PARK 9:35 a.m.**

While waiting for their Space Mountain FASTPASSes, Naruto and Hinata were riding attractions like the Astro Orbitor and Shikamaru and Ino were waiting in line for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.

However, everybody else was in the long 85-minute line for Space Mountain. They were all growing impatient because they still had about 35 more minutes of waiting in line. Choji had eaten his last chip and was now (of course) getting hungry.

"Can't this line move any faster?" asked Sakura.

"We're almost there," Sasuke replied.

Sasuke noticed that her face was red. She was sweating like crazy and she looked as if she was suffering from heat exhaustion. Sasuke took off his over-shirt and he put it over her head, giving her some shade. "Here," he said.

"Thank you," Sakura said.

"It's nothing. I don't want you to die of heat exhaustion."

Sasuke and Sakura then shared a small kiss. Neji watched the whole act and was a bit disappointed. "_Way to be original, Uchiha,"_ Neji said sarcastically in his mind.

"Hey Neji, are you okay?" asked Tenten.

"What?" Neji asked, coming back down to Earth. "Oh yeah, I'm just getting tired of waiting in line."

"Well, look on the bright side. The line couldn't get any longer for this."

Suddenly, a Disneyland cast member in a metallic blue vest walked out in the center of the plaza. "Alright folks, we regret to inform you that due to faulty rocket maintenance, your waiting time for Space Mountain may be longer than anticipated. We apologize for the inconvenience."

Everybody groaned in agony. "What?!? The ride is broken?!?" asked Kiba, angrily.

"You got to be kidding!" Sasuke shouted angrily.

"I'm getting hungry!" Choji shouted.

"Everyone please calm down!" demanded the cast member. "We'll do our best to get the attraction back up-and-running. Unfortunately, we do not know how long that might take. Again, we're sorry for any inconvenience this may cause you."

Neji began rubbing his forehead, trying to calm himself down. "I hope Shikamaru just as miserable as I am," he muttered.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Shikamaru was leaning against the railing, watching a bunch of seagulls on a red buoy shout, "_Mine! Mine! Mine, mine!_"

"Wow, that can get annoying really fast," Shikamaru said.

"You know what's annoying?" Ino asked. "Waiting in a 60-minute line for some submarine ride!"

"It's a pretty long ride, so it's worth our time."

Shikamaru and Ino were waiting in a long line for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, an attraction that opened in 2007 as part of a "Year of a Million Dreams." It was a re-theming of the old Submarine Voyage that closed in 1998. Passengers would board submarines and journey under the sea with Nemo and his friends.

Unfortunately, because of the ride's popularity and its very low riders-per-hour capacity, the lines can sometimes reach three hours when the park was very busy. Thankfully, since it was still a bit early, Shikamaru and Ino only had to wait an hour.

Soon enough, the two finally reached the ride's boarding area. The yellow submarine quietly hummed as it slowly pulled up to the dock. The cast members lowered a bridge that landed on top of the submarine, providing access to the doors on the submarines.

The gates slid open and everyone was allowed in. Shikamaru and Ino walked down the narrow stairways down into the submarines. "OW! Damn it!" Ino shouted as she bumped her head on the low ceiling. "Apparently, tall people weren't in mind when they built the ride."

"At least we're on the ride," replied Shikamaru.

Ino and Shikamaru pulled down their seats and sat down. Shikamaru and Ino continued to push and shove each other as they were trying to get comfortable. "Move, Shikamaru!" shouted Ino.

"I can't! This is as good as I can get," replied Shikamaru.

"I seriously hate this ride," complained Ino.

"Just wait until the ride starts and then you'll feel better."

Suddenly, a bell rang loudly. "_Secure all lines! Cast off forward!_" the stewardess called out, in a Australian accent. Ino and Shikamaru saw the door close on the submarine. They stared out of the portholes and saw that the submarine was slowly moving. "_All ahead! We're cleared!_"

"_Good day everybody! This is the captain speaking. Now that we are underway, I like to welcome you onboard. As the conditions of our voyage may be unpredictable, please remain seated at all times._"

Ino continued looking outside as the coral reef sped past the porthole. She turned to Shikamaru, who was watching outside with interest. "You really do like this ride, do you?" Ino asked.

"Well why not? It's a nice, slow-paced ride with some great stuff to look at," explained Shikamaru. "They need more rides like these."

"_We're ready, captain!_"

"_Let's take her down!_"

"_Aye-aye, sir!_"

A siren blared loudly as a flood of bubbles covered the porthole. "_Dive! Dive!_" shouted the captain. The bubbles blocked the view as it accelerated quickly out into the deep blue sea. "I guess this is pretty neat," commented Ino.

Soon the bubbles dissipated and the colorful coral reef appeared before everyone's eyes. The submarine slowed down so that everyone could enjoy the scenery and the soft music playing. "Isn't this great?" asked Shikamaru.

"It's nice, but I thought we're supposed to be underwater right now," remarked Ino, as she looked up and saw the surface of the water.

Shikamaru didn't reply as he continued watching the coral reefs. Ino smiled and laughed. "What?" Shikamaru asked.

"It's funny how a few minutes ago, you were all boring and miserable, but then here you are, having fun."

"That's because I'm doing what you should be doing on a vacation, relaxing."

Ino again smiled before looking back out her porthole. Shikamaru then smirked. "_If only Neji could see that,_" he thought. "_I'm gaining some points here, and I'm not even trying._"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Attention rocket rovers, the Astro Orbitor is now beginning its descend." _said the announcer.

Naruto and Hinata were finishing their ride on the Astro Orbitor. They rode it after Hinata beat Naruto on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. After they got off Hinata turned to Naruto. "Is it time yet to go back?" she asked.

Naruto looked at the time and then the FASTPASS tickets.

"No," he sighed. "We still have about 30 minutes." Hinata then looked around to see if there were any rides that they can ride. She then saw Star Tours, which only had about a 15 minute wait. "Hey, Naruto," she squeaked. "Let's go on that ride!"

"Star Tours? Um…yeah, okay," he responded. "Why not?" Naruto and Hinata then entered the Star Tours building. Star Tours was a simulator ride based on the hit _Star Wars _trilogies.

Naruto and Hinata breezed through the maintenance room, where a Starspeeder and several robots were getting repaired. The two were organized into rows and after a brief safety video, they boarded the Starspeeder 2000. "This is going to be cool, right Hinata?" Naruto asked, as he fastened his seatbelt.

"I hope so," replied Hinata.

Then, their robot driver appeared on-screen.

"_Welcome aboard!_" said the robot. _"This is Captain Rex from the cockpit. __I know this is probably your first flight ride, and it's mine too, hehe."_

That last comment made Naruto and Hinata a little nervous. "Did he just say this is his first trip?" asked Hinata nervously.

"I'm sure he's trained," reassured Naruto.

"_Well, it looks like we're going to have a smooth flight to Endor, so I'll go ahead and open the cockpit shields._"

Soon, the shield in front of them lowered and Rex revealed himself. "_Hi there!_" The video feed showed R2-D2 being inserted in the Starspeeder. "_I see that they're loading in our navigator, R2-D2, and then we'll be on our way. So sit back, relax, and enjoy your flight!_"

Naruto and Hinata were surprised when the Starspeeder began shaking violently as it ascended to the launch platform.

"_Star Tours, you are clear for dispatch," _said mission control.

Naruto looked over and saw that Hinata was a little worried. "Don't worry," said Naruto. "I'm sure he knows what he's doing."

But suddenly, the Starspeeder lurched into the emergency exit, shoving aside metal gates. "Then again, I could be wrong," Naruto said.

"_Uh-oh! Brakes! Brakes! Where are the brakes!" _panicked Rex. The Starspeeder then broke through the gate and plunged to the floor, nearly missing the fire escapes. Everyone leaned forward as the Starspeeder pulled up from a certain doom. Since, it was a simulator, Naruto and Hinata thought it was real. Rex soon reoriented the speeder and got itself into space. He let out a nervous chuckle. _"I meant to do that. A little shortcut."_

"A little shortcut my ass!" said Naruto.

Rex then powered the ship for hyper speed. _"R2, light speed to Endor!" _The speed then moved at light speed to the moon of Endor. Naruto and Hinata bounced around as they ran into blue crystals that caused some damage to the ship. They were soon involved in a laser battle on the Death Star.

After all the chaos, Rex somehow managed to land the speeder. _"Hey, sorry folks! I'm sure we'll do better next time! It was my first flight and I'm still getting used to my programming!"_

Naruto and Hinata unfastened their seatbelts and walked off the simulator and down into the Star Trader, a store where many Star Wars merchandise was sold. "Well, that was a bumpy ride," complained Naruto.

"Well I liked it," said Hinata.

"It was fun, but it was a lot jerkier than I thought it was."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back at Space Mountain, everyone was relieved when the attraction was finally working again. Sasuke, Sakura, Neji, Tenten, Kiba, and Choji were relieved when they were very close to entering the air-conditioned part of the line. "Oh, thank god!" Sakura said, relieved.

"You said it Sakura," Kiba said. "This heat can't be good for dogs."

Kiba then turned to Akamaru, who was in his jacket, panting heavily. "Why did you bring that stupid dog here anyway?" Neji asked.

"Hey! He's not a stupid dog!" snapped Kiba. "How dare you say such a thing?!?" Akamaru growled angrily after hearing Neji say that.

Right before a fight ensued. Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Ino walked down the FASTPASS line and arrived at the front entrance of the attraction. "Hey guys!" Naruto shouted, happily.

Everyone turned to Naruto. "What are you guys doing here?" Sakura asked.

"You better not be cutting the line!" warned Tenten.

"We're not," replied Shikamaru.

"We're using FASTPASS," Ino said, flashing them their FASTPASS tickets.

"What's that?" Kiba asked.

"It pretty much means that we go up to the machines, put our ticket in, and we get a ticket," explained Shikamaru.

"And if we come back at the time it tells us too, we skip the long line and wait in this much shorter line," continued Hinata.

Everyone's mouths dropped as they looked at the four. "Are you serious? We just waited about 100 minutes in line, and all we had to do to avoid this was to get some ticket!" Neji shouted, angrily.

"Yeah, and while you guys were waiting in line, we got to go on some other rides!" added Naruto.

"We got to go on Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear," Hinata said.

"And me and Shikamaru got to go on the Finding Nemo ride!" added Ino.

Sasuke and Neji lowered their heads. "What's wrong? Are you guys sad that I'm actually smarter than you guys?" Naruto asked. Sasuke and Neji then looked back at Naruto. Neji suddenly disappeared and reappeared behind Naruto. He locked Naruto in a Full Nelson. "I got him!" Neji shouted.

Sasuke and Neji then proceeded to beat up Naruto, much to Hinata's dismay. "Guys stop fighting!" pleaded Hinata.

"Yeah, I don't want to kicked out after waiting in line!" shouted Sakura.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Soon enough, everybody was allowed inside the mountain. Naruto had several bumps and bruises on his face. "They're just jealous that I discovered something before them," groaned Naruto.

The hallways of Space Mountain were illuminated with red and it simulated walking through an actual space station. They continued to walk around the many sharp corners, and then walking down the neon blue hallway.

They soon were shuffled into the main boarding area. From above, they could see the loading area for the rockets and the huge ship labeled DL-2000 hanging from the ceiling. Many sounds filled the room: lap bars ratcheting, air brakes hissing, and the screaming of guests who have just finished their ride through space. Everybody loved the theme and the ambience. Though, Hinata looked down at the rockets nervously.

"What's wrong?" asked Naruto.

"Uhhhh…do I really have to ride?" she asked, nervously.

"Why don't you want to ride?"

"Well, it is a roller coaster…in the dark."

"Don't worry, Hinata. Just think of Star Tours on wheels."

Hinata was still a bit anxious about riding. Naruto then found something else to calm her down. He looked at the people who just finished the ride. Most of them were cheering and celebrating. "Look, Hinata," he said. "A lot of people like the ride."

"I guess so," Hinata replied.

Ino looked down at the empty rockets, concentrating on where to sit. "I want to sit in the front," she said.

"Oh don't worry baby, I promise you the front row," Shikamaru said, slyly. Ino was surprised. "Did you just call me 'baby'?" she asked.

"Yeah," Shikamaru said.

"Well, don't," replied Ino. "It's really creepy when you said that."

Shikamaru was bit taken back by Ino's comment. He heard small laughing from behind him. "Shut up Neji," snapped Shikamaru. Shikamaru turned around and found out that it was actually Choji laughing at him. "What the hell are you laughing at?" he asked.

"You," replied Choji. "That was real smooth what you did right there."

"Just be quiet," growled Shikamaru.

They soon reached the rocket loading. They were all organized into different rows. Hinata and Naruto got the front row while Sasuke and Sakura sat behind them. Tenten and Neji got the third row. Ino and Shikamaru got the front row of the second rocket, and Kiba and Choji got single seats in the back rows. Kiba, reluctantly Akamaru behind with the Disney cast members.

"I thought you said we were going to sit in the front," said Ino.

"Yeah, I did. See, the front row," said Shikamaru.

"I thought you meant the _very _front row."

"What different does it make?"

After they got into their seats and lowered their restraints, they were lurched forward to the lap bar check. Hinata was still a bit nervous, but she was glad that Naruto was there with her. Naruto then scooted his hand closer to hers. "Hinata, don't worry," he said. "I'll be right next to you. So, don't be scared, okay? Because I'm here for you."

Naruto leaned in and kissed Hinata on her cheek. Hinata then loosened up a bit. "Thank you, Naruto. I needed that," she said quietly.

"Ah, isn't that romantic, Neji?" asked Tenten.

"I suppose," Neji said. "_Hmm…but maybe I can learn a few things from Naruto Uzumaki._"

"_Space shuttle, for your safety, remain seated with your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the rocket. And watch your children. You are cleared for launch!_"

The brakes hissed and the rocket began moving forward. The ride's new soundtrack came in through the rocket's new sound system. The rockets made a right into a tunnel of red pulsing lights as they climbed the first lift. _"This is 77, this is Mission Control. We are initiating power transference in 3…2…1!_

Bright white lights then started flashing rapidly, energizing the rockets for their high-speed ride through space. They then warped through a blue strobe tunnel. The rocket seemed to go faster with every pulse of light. After that, they entered the second lift.

"_Power levels at maximum. Loading launch coordinates."_

Red lights then started spinning around the tunnel and the riders, making it look as if the tunnel was spinning around them. Hinata, although amazed at the special effects, was still little nervous about the upcoming ride. "Still nervous?" asked Naruto. Hinata looked away. "Relax. I mean how dark is the ride, really?"

Soon they reached the top of the second lift, where they finally entered the main part of the ride. It was very dark with many stars swirling around them. "N-N-Naruto, what happened to the track?" Hinata asked nervously.

"Wow, this is darker than I thought it would be," commented Naruto.

"This is amazing," Sakura said.

The rocket made another turn and then they entered the final chain lift. The countdown began. "Another lift? How high is this thing going to get?" asked Hinata.

_You are go for launch in T-minus 10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1. LIFTOFF!_

The rockets leveled out and turned to the left, achieving fast acceleration. The soundtrack changed to upbeat techno music, as the rocket gained enough speed to force everybody back into their seats. "Alright! Here we go!" Naruto shouted, excitedly.

The rocket sped through the darkness, making unexpected twists and turns. The ride was very fast and very curvy. Everyone screamed throughout the whole ride through. Hinata's screams were the loudest, but it was from excitement and enjoyment.

The coaster continued making high speed drops, climbs, and turns. It felt like a convoluted maze of sharp turns and drops. The roller coaster then went up a sharp incline, slowing down a bit. The music slowed down to match the change of speed. Everyone was taken by surprise of the roller coaster's high-speed and its unpredictability. The rocket suddenly went down a large, steep drop. The music and coaster was now back up to speed…maybe even a little faster.

Another sharp turn and the rocket entered the re-entry tunnel. A bright, white light blinded them as a hidden camera took their photos. Everyone lunged forward as the ride braked to a halt. Everybody laughed and screamed out of excitement. The rockets then made a U-turn back into the station.

"_Welcome back, space travelers!"_

They returned to the station cheering and applauding the roller coaster. "What did you think, Hinata?" Naruto asked.

"That was a lot of fun!" Hinata said, happily.

"That was…a lot better than I thought it would be," commented Sasuke.

"Don't give me that!" snapped Sakura. "You were screaming throughout the entire ride."

"No I wasn't," Sasuke replied, quickly.

"Meh…I guess it was okay," commented Shikamaru.

Soon, their rockets reached the unloading area. The lap bars came up with a clank and everyone stepped out. Kiba then grabbed Akamaru and placed him on the ground. He then continued his blind-guy act.

"Okay, we're done with Space Mountain. Can we eat now?" Choji said.

Upon leaving the ride, they looked at the on-ride photos taken from the ride. They laughed at their reactions and facial expressions.

"Ah, how cute," taunted Naruto. "We should get copies of our pictures. That way everyone back home will know about Sasuke's first roller coaster ride.

"I don't think so," threatened Sasuke.

While Naruto and Sasuke were fighting, Neji turned around and noticed a girl with long hair coming out with them. Everyone noticed her too. "Huh? Who's she?" asked Ino.

"That's Tenten," Sakura responded.

"Is it?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah it's me. I guess my braids fell out during the ride," explained Tenten. "I can fix it, though."

She was going to fix it, but Neji reached out and stopped her. "Um…actually, maybe you could leave your hair down for a little while," Neji said, softly.

"What?" Tenten asked. "Why?"

"I don't know." Actually, Neji did know. "It's just that I never really seen you with your hair down. You look better with your hair down."

"You think so?" asked Tenten.

"Well…yeah."

Neji then began blushing a light shade of red. Hinata was the only one who noticed this. "_I can't believe that Neji would try to hit on Tenten,_" she thought to herself.

Everybody decided to walk through Tomorrowland and head to Fantasyland. Sasuke and Shikamaru, however, didn't want to go to Fantasyland.

"Isn't everything in Fantasyland for kids?" Sasuke asked.

"Well, I don't know what little kid would want to go on the Matterhorn?" asked Sakura.

Sakura then pointed to the Matterhorn Mountain. Everyone looked and saw bobsleds speeding down the mountain. The Matterhorn Bobsleds was the first tubular steel roller coaster not only for Disneyland, but for the world. "Huh, I didn't see that," remarked Kiba.

"_How did he not see it?_" asked Naruto, to himself. "_It's like the biggest thing in the park._"

The ride had two different sides to it, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. Everyone got in line, but once they got to the point where the ride split into two different rides, Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and Hinata decided to board the Fantasyland side while Neji, Tenten, Ino, and Shikamaru rode the Tomorrowland side.

Hinata turned around and saw that Choji and Kiba were waiting by the exit. "Hey Kiba, aren't you going to ride?" asked Hinata.

"And leave Akamaru with those Disney guys? Nah, I think I'll pass on this ride," answered Kiba.

"What about you Choji?" asked Shikamaru.

"No way. I think I'll go and try out some of the food stands here," Choji replied.

"Choji, is that seriously all you came here for?" Ino asked. "Just for some food?"

"Let him. It's his vacation too," interrupted Shikamaru.

Both Choji and Kiba then left for the Village Haus Restaurant.

After a brief wait, everyone reached the loading area. The Matterhorn Bobsleds had ride vehicles where riders have to sit one-behind-one. Neji thought he could use this to his advantage. "Hey Tenten, do you want to sit in front of me?" asked Neji.

"Sure," Tenten replied.

Shikamaru (who was standing right beside Neji) saw through his plan and then took another look at the bobsleds. "How about you Ino?" Shikamaru asked. "You want to ride on my lap?"

"Why so you can cop a feel?" Ino asked, sternly.

"Come on, do I really look like the kind of guy who would that?"

"I guess not, but you never know."

Soon, their bobsled trains pulled up to the station. The air gates opened and everyone stepped aboard. After fastening their seatbelts, the bobsleds moved forward to the opening of the mountain. While the safety instructions were being announced, Neji couldn't help but stare at Tenten. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable around women, but the fact that Tenten was his teammate made him a bit nervous about being very close to her, both physically and mentally.

Neji then smelled a sweet aroma in the air. It smelled like…strawberries. Neji leaned a bit closer towards Tenten and he realized that the smell was coming from her hair. "_This smell is so…intoxicating,_" he thought to himself. He got closer to Tenten's hair and began smelling it. Tenten suddenly jerked her head around, looking at him. "What are you doing?" she asked, somewhat angrily.

Before she could get a reply, the brakes hissed and soon the bobsleds descended into the dark mountain.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **So, along with the spelling mistakes and stuff like that, I also changed the ending. In the original version of this story, Neji got an erection from Tenten sitting on his lap. But not only was that uncharacteristic of Neji, but it was also somewhat of a stupid joke, so I replaced it with something a little more Neji-like…or not.

**Next Time: **After their wild ride on the Matterhorn, the group takes on the Fantasyland attractions!


	3. Fantasyland

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The brakes hissed and soon the bobsleds descended into the dark mountain. It latched onto the chain lift. It was so dark that you can't see anything. "Oh god…I can't see…I can't see! We're all going to die!" Naruto shouted.

"Shut up," Shikamaru replied.

Soon, they reached the top, where a pair of glowing red eyes appeared and a loud roar was heard. "It's the abominable snowman! Run for it!" Ino shouted.

The tracks then broke away from each other, separating into two different directions. The Fantasyland side made a right and the Tomorrowland made a left. Everyone screamed as they sped past caverns and crystals. On the Fantasyland side, the bobsled came close to colliding with the monorail.

After another near-miss with the yeti, the trains climbed over a small hill. "Here comes the good part!" Sakura said. Both bobsled trains made a "splashdown" into the water. A few drops of water splashed onto them.

"_Remain seated please! (Permanezcan sentados, por favor!)_"

Once the bobsleds reached the unloading area, everyone jumped out and rejoined at the exit. "Well that was fun," commented Shikamaru. "At least I only waited a few minutes."

"So, what do you guys want to do now?" asked Ino.

"Well, since there are so many rides here, let's split up and do what we want," suggested Sakura.

Everybody agreed and went their separate ways.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Sasuke and Sakura went to Peter Pan's Flight. "Sakura, why did you bring me here?" asked Sasuke.

"Come on Sasuke," said Sakura. "You get to fly in a ship with Peter Pan. It'll be a lot of fun!"

"Oh, great," groaned Sasuke.

The waiting line was posted at 20 minutes wait when they got there. While waiting in line, Sasuke continued complaining. "This is going to suck," complained Sasuke.

"Quit whining, Sasuke!" scolded Sakura. "Why don't you want to ride, anyway?"

"Because it's a cheaply-built children ride," explained Sasuke.

"It doesn't look cheap," replied Sakura.

"It's because they always make the outside look good. But inside, it's probably filled with cheap cardboard characters and Day-Glo paint."

After waiting, they boarded their flying ship, which was suspended from a hidden rail overhead. The ship then moved forward into the first scene of the ride, the nursery.

"_Come on, everybody. Here we go!"_ said Peter Pan._ "Off to Neverland."_

The window of the nursery opened up and Sasuke and Sakura started to fly upwards into the skies of London. "_You Can Fly!"_ played as the ship flew over London and past Big Ben. It looked very realistic. Sakura still can't believe they were in California. Even Sasuke was slightly convinced. "You still think it's fake?" asked Sakura.

"Okay, the paint choice was pretty cool," Sasuke admitted. "But I bet Peter Pan is nothing more than some cardboard cut-out."

The ship continued to fly around Neverland itself. When they reached the room where Peter Pan and Captain Hook were fighting each other, Sasuke saw that Peter Pan was a realistic (though, not slow-moving) audio-animatronics figure. "Okay, I'm impressed…I guess," Sasuke said.

"See, the whole point is you're not supposed to know its fake." said Sakura. "You just sort of play around with that idea and go with it."

Sasuke agreed with her. He pulled her closer as they continued throughout the rest of the attraction.

After they got off the ride, they took a little rest break near the exit. "So Sasuke, what do you want to do now?" she asked.

"Well, let's check out the rest of Fantasyland. Then we'll take the monorail back to our hotel, we'll go to our room and…uh…fulfill some of my own fantasies," Sasuke suggested, in a sly voice.

"Ooohhh Sasuke, you're such a filthy-minded boy." The two kissed each other before heading over to Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Choji and Kiba stood in front of the Village Haus restaurant. "Kiba, we are men on a mission. We are going to try some of the best food that this theme park has to offer!" asked Choji. "How about some free food?"

"I'm done for that," agreed Kiba.

Kiba then put on his 'blind man' glasses and placed Akamaru on the ground. Choji put on his fake nerd glasses. "Let's do this, Kiba!" Choji said. The two stepped into the restaurant.

Kiba held onto Akamaru's leash as if Akamaru leading the way. They walked past the people in line and walked up to the counter. "Can I help you?" asked the cashier.

"Hello, I am Chojo Akamunchi. I am with the California Department of Food Safety and Health. I am the health inspector," said Choji. He even flashed the cashier a realistic badge from the CDFSH. In reality, it was something he crafted out of some metal, but thankfully the cashier bought it.

She then saw Kiba standing by him. "Then, who is he?" asked the cast member.

"That is my blind friend, Kiba Inozuko. This is his dog, Akamaru. He too is a health inspector." Kiba then flashed his health inspector badge to the cashier. "We must sample every food item on the menu," Kiba said. "Since I am in fact a bad man, I will rely heavily on my sense on taste. Your food better surpass my expectations."

Surprisingly, Disney actually fell for their little trick and they gave him every food item they have. "Go ahead and have a seat," the cashier said. "I'll have the cooks bring it out to you."

"Thank you very much," Choji said.

Choji and Kiba turned around and walked back outside to grab a table. They sat down and laughed together. "We got this," Choji said. The two then high-fived each other.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Nearby, Hinata and Naruto were finishing up a ride on Dumbo the Flying Elephant. "That was fun," commented Hinata.

"I don't know. I still don't see why so many little kids like some ride where you go round and round," complained Naruto.

"I think it's because little kids actually think that it's a real elephant," explained Hinata.

"I guess. Well anyway, any other ride you want to go on, my darling?" he asked.

Hinata blushed a bit. Despite that she and Naruto have been dating for some time now, it still felt weird for her to be called that by Naruto.

She looked around and saw Choji and Kiba trying out every food item at the Village Haus restaurant. "_I know Choji would do that, but it's strange that Kiba would join him,_" she thought. Right next to them, she saw a cute little mini train. "Hey, let's go on that ride, Naruto," she squeaked.

"Ah man…another kiddie ride?" Naruto asked.

"Oh…I mean…if there's something else you want to do…"

"No, it's nothing like that! I mean, let's go ahead and ride," Naruto said.

They headed over the Casey Jr. Circus Train, a small train ride that was one of the few original Disneyland attractions to make it through all 50 years that it's open.

When they reached the front of the line, they headed for the monkey's cage. As they stepped inside, Naruto bumped his head on the cage ceiling. "OW!" Naruto shouted. He then began rubbing his head in pain. "Oh my, Naruto! Are you okay?" Hinata asked, worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I guess they didn't build this ride for tall people," he commented.

The ringmaster continued announcing the safety rules. _"And now Casey," he said. "Let's get this show on the road, or should I say…track. All aboard! All aboard!_"

"_All aboard! Let's go!"_ the train whistled. Soon, the Casey Jr. song played through the sound system.

Despite being cramped in a cage, Naruto liked the ride. Hinata and he had fun pointing out the landmarks in Storybook Land.

Down below in the water, a small boat was passing by the same landmarks. In that boat was Neji and Tenten. They decided to ride the Storybook Land Canal Boats, a boat ride which floats alongside the Storybook Land landmarks.

Tenten was first to see Naruto and Hinata in the monkey cage. "Hey look, Neji!" she shouted, excitedly. Neji saw the small circus train and Naruto in the cage. "Kudos to Lady Hinata, she finally put Naruto in his place," remarked Neji.

Tenten laughed as the boat continued down its path. "Hey Neji, I've been meaning to ask you something," Tenten said.

"Yes, what is it?" Neji asked.

"Back at the Matterhorn, why were you sniffing my hair?" asked Tenten.

Neji froze in place. "_Oh crap! She actually remembers that?!? Damn, I got to think of something quick! Well actually…since there is no way out of this…_"

"Well, I couldn't help it," began Neji. "Your hair smelled wonderful…like strawberries."

"Still, it just felt weird to have someone sniff my hair."

"Oh well, I apologize if I made you feel uncomfortable."

"I guess I'll forgive you. But you know something Neji. You've been acting a little strange lately."

"I suppose I have. I don't know why I'm acting like this. It's not like me."

"Well, you're usually so reserved. I'm surprised that you even agreed to come on the trip."

"You wouldn't let me say 'no'. But it is kind of nice to get away from Rock Lee and Guy-sensei once in a while."

"They can get pretty annoying sometimes."

Neji and Tenten said nothing more afterwards.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back at the Village Haus Restaurant, Kiba and Choji were picking their teeth after eating all of the food that they were provided. "Oh man, that was good!" Kiba said, happily.

"Hey Kiba, did you save room for desert?" asked Choji.

"I think I can squeeze it in somewhere," replied Kiba.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Ino and Shikamaru were getting out of "it's a small world" and were passing through the gift shop. "Well, that sucked," complained Ino. "I mean, the song is annoying enough in English. Why do they to have language variations?"

"I didn't think it was so bad," Shikamaru said.

"Seriously? You mean you're not going to say anything like "oh, the music was drag" or "this whole park is a drag?""

"It wasn't so bad. I mean yeah, the song is annoying, but the ride itself is nice and slow."

"You really like slow rides, don't you?" Ino asked.

"Well, slow rides are worth more of your time than roller coasters. Besides, I hate roller coasters."

"Why? Roller coasters are fun!"

"I guess Space Mountain was okay. At least I didn't wait 100 minutes in line. But all roller coasters do is make you dizzy and bang you around. Slow rides just let you relax and take everything in."

"I never knew that about you. Well anyway, let's go on some other ride."

Ino and Shikamaru looked around them. Since nothing else in Fantasyland interested them, they walked underneath the Disneyland Railroad and into Mickey's Toontown.

Mickey's Toontown, a land that opened in 1993, was also a land geared towards children, but there was one ride that interested Ino and Shikamaru, Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin. Car Toon Spin was a dark ride that many described as 'like a Fantasyland dark ride mixed with tea cups'. The cars spin while moving on a fixed track.

Shikamaru and Ino only had a 30 minute wait before getting on. Shikamaru noticed the writing on the steering wheel that said 'to spin the car, spin the wheel as fast as you can.' Shikamaru wasn't very happy upon reading this. "What is this? A spinning ride? I hope this ride is not a drag." said Shikamaru.

The door was closed shut and after the cast members checked to make sure everything was secured, the ride moved forward and made a left turn into Toontown. "It's okay Shikamaru, we are just going on a little trip through Toontown," explained Ino.

The ride continued down its path until suddenly, the weasels then threw "dip" all over the track, causing the wheels to spin out. "_Holy smokes, Roger. We've been dipped!"_

Shikamaru was surprised when the cab went into an uncontrollable spin. Shikamaru was plastered to the side of the car as Ino continued to spin the wheel. "What's going on?" asked Shikamaru. "Ino, stop spinning the wheel!"

"No way! This is fun!" Ino shouted, happily.

Shikamaru and Ino devoted most of their ride time fighting over control of the steering wheel. Because they were so busy fighting, they didn't see any of the special effects.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**LATER THAT DAY…**

It was noon at Disneyland Park. After covering Fantasyland and Mickey's Toontown, everyone met up at the entrance of Sleeping Beauty Castle. Choji, however, made a quick stop at the Main Street Ice Cream Parlor to get a Sundae. There were throngs of people on Main Street. It was packed.

"Wow, this place got crowded fast," remarked Kiba.

"Look at how many people are here," added Hinata.

"Ah man, what a drag," complained Shikamaru.

"Come on, let's check the ride board," said Sakura.

They walked over to the ride board, which tells park guests about the current waiting times at all of the park's popular rides. They weren't too happy to see the result.

Rides like Big Thunder Mountain, Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, Star Tours, and the Matterhorn were now posted at 45 minutes. Space Mountain and Splash Mountain were both pushing 110 minutes (an hour and eighty minutes). The Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage was now at a whopping 150 minutes, which was close to two hours and thirty minutes!

"This is ridiculous!" Neji shouted angrily.

Suddenly, a woman with her three kids shoved Choji forward, making him spill his ice cream. "Hey, what's your problem?!?" Choji asked, angrily.

"Choji, it's just ice cream. Let it go," Ino said.

"But I paid six dollars for that!" argued Choji.

"Wow, you overpaid for ice cream," remarked Shikamaru.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting out of here!" Kiba said. "If you guys need me, I'm going to take the monorail."

He led Akamaru led him to Tomorrowland. He shoved a few people aside. "Hold up, Kiba!" shouted Naruto. Everyone reluctantly agreed to head back to their hotel.

After having to push and shove a bunch of people aside and waiting in a 45-minute line, they boarded the Disneyland Monorail. The monorail continued on its path alongside Harbor Blvd. and then crossing into Disney's California Adventure. "Hey, look at that!" Ino shouted, excitedly.

"What is that?" Neji asked.

"Look how empty the park is," Ino said.

Everyone looked out of the windows and saw that crowds at DCA were indeed sparse. The monorail continued passing by several of the park's attractions such as Tower of Terror, Grizzly River Run, and in the far back, the California Screamin' roller coaster.

"This place looks pretty fun," Hinata muttered quietly.

"Maybe after we take a rest break at the hotel, we can go into this park and some fun," suggested Naruto.

"You guys can have some fun," Shikamaru said. "I'll take a nap for the rest of the day."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After the monorail ride, Sasuke and Sakura went back to their hotel room. Sakura plopped down onto the bed. "Oh man, we've only been at Disneyland for a few hours, but I'm so tired," she groaned.

"I hope you're not too tired," Sasuke said.

Sasuke then jumped on top of Sakura. Sakura squealed a bit. "What are you doing?" asked Sakura.

"We do have a few hours to burn away," Sasuke said. Sasuke and Sakura looked each other in the eyes before locking their lips together. The two continued kissing each other feverishly. It was only a matter of time before they started to grope each other.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Choji was with Kiba touring Downtown Disney, using their fake health inspector badges to their advantage. Ino, Tenten, and Hinata were also in Downtown Disney shopping. Shikamaru was in his room, relaxing on his bed. He was thinking about the day so far. "_Hmm…what have I done with Ino?_" Shikamaru asked himself. _ "I went on a ride on the Submarines and Space Mountain with her, had a 'playful' fight with her on Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin, and…that's about it. But none of those things are anything really special. I have to think of something that will make Ino attracted to me._"

Shikamaru continued to think up of several ideas. "_Let's see, what is it that women like?_"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Hinata, Ino, and Tenten were shopping at the World of Disney store in Downtown Disney. Hinata and Tenten were looking through the several different clothes that had on display.

"Hey Hinata," said Hinata.

"What is it?" Hinata asked.

"Has something happened to Neji at the Hyuga Mansion?" asked Tenten.

"Why do you ask?" asked Hinata.

"Well, Neji's been acting very strange lately," Tenten said. "I mean ever since I let my hair down from Space Mountain, he's been acting more…upfront. He even sniffed my hair when we were on the Matterhorn."

"Neji wouldn't do something like that."

"I thought the same thing. He told me that it's just because he's on vacation."

"_I guess that's a good excuse to use,_" thought Hinata.

"But you know," continued Tenten. "Even though it's a little creepy, I like how Neji is letting loose. He's usually so introverted and quiet. Maybe if this keeps up, he'll start opening up a little bit."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After taking a short nap, Naruto left his room and began walking down the hallway. "Where are you going?" asked a voice.

Naruto turned around and saw Neji standing in the hallway. "Oh, hey Neji!" Naruto said. "Um…I'm going downstairs and shop around for some souvenirs with Hinata."

"Oh, how perfect. I was going to go downstairs and do the same with Tenten," Neji said. "How about you and I walk downstairs together?"

"Well…okay. But you know you're coming off as creepy, right?"

Naruto and Neji walked down the hallways and then boarded the elevators. "So, you and Lady Hinata have been dating for how long?" asked Neji.

"About three years," replied Naruto.

"It didn't take that much work for her to fall in love with you, didn't it?" asked Neji.

"Ehhh…I guess not."

"So, what did you do?"

"What do you mean? She fell in love with me way before I even know what I did. Why would you even ask me that for?"

"Well, because…"

Naruto then began smiling. "I get it now. You like someone, don't you?"

"Kind of."

"Who is it?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"I don't know. Is it someone I know?"

"Forget it! I didn't say anything!"

"Look Neji, that's the reason why most women don't like you. You got good looks, but you have the personality of a wooden plank."

"Hey!"

"Well you do! Look, I don't know who this girl is, but if you want her to like you. You seriously need to lighten up. Let loose. You're on vacation!"

"Loosen up?"

"Yeah! Have fun! Crack a smile! Act like a moron if you have too, but not too much like a moron, or else she'll think you're some crazy."

Soon, the elevator doors opened and Naruto and Neji walked out, and headed to the World of Disney store. Neji continued to replay Naruto's words in his head. "Loosen up, huh?" he muttered.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **Well, that's chapter three! Again, I got rid of the erection jokes that were in the first version. There was also a Michael Jackson joke that I wrote in there. It's not too hard to figure out why I deleted it. I added a few minor things here and there. Overall, I'm happy with how this chapter turned out.

**NEXT TIME: **Everyone decides to head out to Disney's California Adventure. The first ride everyone heads for: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror!


	4. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

1:17 p.m. and everyone was getting ready to go to Disney's California Adventure. An hour ago, Disneyland Park got so crowded, that everybody decided to leave. They went back to take a break in their hotel rooms.

Tenten came by Sasuke and Sakura's room. Before she knocked on the door, she noticed a set of headbands hanging the doorknob. "Why is this here?" she asked herself.

She then knocked on the door. Inside the room, the two lovebirds were immediately startled. Both of them were stripped down to their underwear. "W-Who is it?" asked Sakura nervously.

"Sakura, are you in there?" Tenten asked.

"Oh crap, it's Tenten!" whispered Sasuke.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"No!" they both answered simultaneously.

"What are you guys even doing?" Tenten asked.

"Uh, me and Sasuke are…doing something." said Sakura.

"Doing what?" Tenten asked again. But then, she then smirked. "_**Ohhh**_…I get it what you guys are doing. Well, anyway, we're ready to go to California Adventure. Finish what you're doing and meet us by the entrance."

"Ummmm…Yeah sure," replied Sasuke.

Tenten then walked down the hallways, laughing quietly to herself. Sasuke and Sakura stared at each other. "Well, she did say we should finish what we're doing," smirked Sasuke.

"No Sasuke, we have to go," said Sakura. "If we took any longer, everyone will get suspicious."

Sakura then got up and put her clothes back on. "God damn," cursed Sasuke as he reluctantly got up form the bed.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Everybody was waiting for Sasuke and Sakura at the special hotel entrance to Disney's California Adventure. Naruto was getting a little impatient. "What taking those two so long?" asked Naruto.

"Give them a break Naruto," Tenten said. "They were busy when I went up to their room."

"Busy doing what?!?"

Before Tenten got to answer, Sasuke and Sakura showed up, exhausted. "We're here now!" Sakura said.

"What took you guys so long?" asked Naruto.

"Well, funny you should ask Naruto," Tenten said.

"Let's go!" Sasuke shouted, angrily.

Everyone decided to enter Disney's California Adventure park. They walked into the Golden State District and down towards the park's main entrance.

"Let's go to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot," suggested Ino.

When they reached the Backlot, they all looked around for something to ride. Hinata saw something she liked, Monsters Inc. Mike and Sully to the Rescue, a dark ride that was introduced in 2006. "Hey, that looks fun," she said.

"Nah, I want to go on something that'll thrill!" Kiba said.

The group rounded a corner and Kiba saw something that caught his eye. It was an old and ruined hotel. It was very ominous-looking with a huge scar on the building. The doors then opened and everyone watched as an elevator-load full of people came plummeting to their doom. It was The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, which many considered to be the most terrifying ride at the Disneyland Resort.

"Oh, yeah! That's a ride right there!" Kiba shouted excitedly.

Kiba was excited about the ride, but everybody else were beginning to rethink the idea. Sasuke, Neji, and Shikamaru all had second thoughts.

"_That…actually looks pretty intimidating_," thought Neji.

"_Get a grip, Sasuke! It's not that scary,_" thought Sasuke.

"Well, I don't know about you guys but I'll ride," said Ino, breaking the silence.

"Me too," Shikamaru said. "Nothing scares me…especially some thrill rides."

"There is no way I'm going on that!" protested Choji.

"Oh, come o…"

"No way, Ino!" interrupted Ino. "You guys are crazy! If you need me, I'll be at the gift shop!"

"Hey come on now, Choji!" Kiba said. Kiba then pulled out a candy bar. "I got your spinach, Popeye!" Kiba continued to tempt Choji with the sugary sweet, but Choji took another look at the tower. "I never thought I say this, but I'm not hungry," Choji said. "Again, I'll be at the gift shop."

Choji then walked towards the ride's exit. "Ah, just leave him," said Naruto. "It's obvious he's too chicken to ride. I'm not scared! Let's go and ride Hinata."

Naruto looked at Hinata, who continued looking up at the attraction. "Hey Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto asked. Hinata didn't answer. "Hinata?" Naruto asked again.

"Huh?" asked Hinata, coming back to Earth.

"Do you want to ride?" asked Naruto.

"Umm…yeah, l-l-let's go," Hinata stuttered nervously.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I'm n-not letting it get to me." Although Hinata was the most terrified out of everybody, decided to ride, too.

After coming to an agreement, they began to walk towards the stand-by line, which was only 25 minutes. Hinata took note of the warning sign, which read that the ride features high-speed drops into the fifth dimension. But she took it in stride and joined the line.

After passing through the patio, they all entered the hotel's lobby. Dust and dirt was everywhere. The entire lobby looked worn-out and old. Suitcases and other props filled the room. Various 1920's music played, adding to the ghoulish atmosphere.

"God, this place is a mess," commented Sasuke.

Everybody was then shunted into the hotel library, passing by an elevator shaft that was apparently '**out of order**.'

Inside the library, everyone looked around and saw the shelves filled with books, locked behind small steel gates. "This is pretty cool," said Naruto. "But why did they lock up the books? Nobody is going to steal them. Right, Hinata?"

He then noticed that Hinata was breathing a bit heavily and she was sweating uncontrollably. "Hinata, are you scared?" he asked. "Well, actually…"

Hinata was going to continue but she continued looking at Naruto's face, who was worried about her. "No, I'm not scared," she said, courageously.

Suddenly, a thunderstorm sounded throughout the library and the lights went out. Hinata shrieked and grabbed onto Naruto. The TV came on. On TV were a door and a man in a black suit.

_You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension: a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of shadow and substance of things and ideas. You have just crossed over into…the Twilight Zone._

"Boring." said Shikamaru. "What else is on?"

"Shush!" hushed Ino. The TV then showed an image of the hotel, when it was luxurious.

_Hollywood, 1939. Amid the glitz and glitter of a bustling movie town at the height of its age, the Hollywood Tower Hotel was a star in its own way. Now something is about to happen that will change all that._

Five guests boarded the elevator. When they reached the 13th floor, lighting struck the tower and the elevator disappeared. Hinata was completely freaked out. "Naruto, what happened to the elevator?" she asked.

"I think a better question is, what happened to the people?" he replied.

_The time is now, on an evening very much like the one we have just witnessed. Tonight's story of the Twilight Zone is somewhat unique and calls for a different kind of introduction. This, as you may recognize, is a maintenance service elevator, still in operation, waiting for you. We invite you if you dare to step aboard, because in tonight's episode, you are the star, as this elevator travels directly to…The Twilight Zone._

The TV then turned off. Everyone was speechless until Kiba decided to speak up. "Oh man, this is going to be awesome!"

Another door opened up and everyone moved into the boiler room. The boiler room was dark and spooky. Chains clanked against the steel girders above them. Everyone was feeling a little anxious.

When they reached the front line and stood in front of the elevator doors, Hinata was worried about what she was going to see. The bellhop then showed up. "Welcome all to the Hollywood Tower Hotel. In just a few moments, you will begin boarding your maintenance service elevators. A few rules though, please no food or drinks, no video recording of any kind, and please hang on to any loose articles such as hats, glasses, toys, dolls, children, loved ones…anything you wish to keep in this realm," he said in a creepy voice.

He then noticed Akamaru, who was trembling and whimpering in fear. "Excuse me, sir, I understand that you are visually-impaired but dogs are not allowed in the elevator," He said to Kiba.

"That's okay. I don't want to lose my buddy anyway," Kiba said, handing him over to the bellhop. "Thank you very much."

Suddenly, the elevator doors opened and everybody boarded the elevator. However, Naruto stopped in the hallway. "Naruto, what are you doing?" Hinata asked.

Naruto turned towards the bellhop. "Um, excuse me. I don't think this is for me. I want out," he said.

"What?" Hinata asked.

"Then just make a right down the hallway," the bellhop said.

"Thanks," Naruto said. Naruto began walking down the hallway with Hinata following behind him. "Naruto, wait!"

"Where are they going?" Ino asked.

"I guess they're not riding," answered Tenten.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As Naruto went down the stairs, Hinata suddenly caught up to him. "Naruto, wait a minute! How come you didn't want to ride?"

"Hinata," he said "If you were scared the whole time, why didn't you tell me?"

"Because…I…didn't want you to think less of me," admitted Hinata. Naruto then remembered what he said about Choji. "Oh…hehe…about that…that was just me and Choji. You're someone special. I would never think of you as anything less than the beautiful women," he said. "Besides, this ride actually kind of scares me a little bit."

"Really? I thought you were pretty brave," said Hinata.

"Are you kidding me?!? This ride has a freaking dropping elevator! There's no way I'm going on that!" Naruto shouted, hysterically.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back at the elevators, everyone took their seats and fastened their seatbelts. Ino, Kiba and Shikamaru got the front rows, Sasuke and Sakura got the very back rows, and Neji and Tenten got the middle rows. For the most part, everyone was still a bit anxious.

"Sasuke," Sakura said. "I'm a little scared now."

"Really? Now you decide you're scared?" Sasuke asked. Sasuke, however, held Sakura closer to him. "Don't worry, Sakura. I'm here for you," he said.

After the bellhop then checked everybody's seatbelts, he pressed a button. "I do hope you will enjoy your stay with us," said the bellboy in a creepy voice. "Are there any questions, comments, or concerns?"

"Umm…" said Sakura.

She was suddenly cut off when the bellboy slammed the little gate. "Oops…too late," he said. Then came their worst nightmare, the elevator doors closed.

"Man, I'm not going to enjoy this-"

Shikamaru was cut off when the elevator suddenly lurched backwards. _"You are the passengers of the most uncommon elevator."_ Lighting filled the shaft. _"About to take the strangest journey of your lives. Your destination: unknown. But this much is clear," _The elevator doors then closed and the elevator moved up. _"A reservation had been made in your name for an extended stay."_

Ino then realized that she was probably not going to make it. "What did I get myself into?" she asked. Shikamaru then grabbed her hand to comfort her. "Now relax, it's nothing that bad," Shikamaru said. Ino blushed a little bit while Shikamaru turned around. "_Score one for me,_" he thought.

The elevator moved to the second floor. The doors opened and they saw a reflection of themselves in a mirror. _"Wave goodbye to the real world."_

When they did, lighting struck and their reflections turned into ghosts. Almost everyone went into near panic when the elevator shook a little bit. "Alright!" Kiba shouted. He was the only one enjoying the ride. _"You have just entered the Twilight Zone."_

"Ohhhh, spooky," said Kiba.

"Knock it off, Kiba," said Sasuke.

"What? Man, you guys are a bunch of pansies," replied Kiba.

The elevator then slowly went up another floor. The doors opened and everyone looked down the hall. _"What happened here to dim the lights of Hollywood's brightest showplex is about to unfold once again."_

They then saw the ghosts of the elevator accident. They moaned, beckoning everyone to join them. They the ghosts disappeared. They entered the Twilight Zone star field. _"One stormy night long ago, five people stepped through the door of an elevator and into a nightmare. That door is opening once again," _The door to the Twilight Zone opened up in front of them, and they saw the victims, beckoning them to join them. _"But this time, it's opening for you."_ The room went dark.

"Here it comes!" Kiba shouted, excitedly.

Suddenly, everybody screamed at the top of their lungs, as they took their terrifying plunge! But it didn't stop there. The elevator raised up to the top of the shaft. The door opened, allowing everyone to see the whole park. A hidden camera took their photo. They, the elevator dropped for two more plunges.

At last, the ride came to an end. _"Next time you check into a deserted hotel on the dark side of Hollywood, make sure you know what kind of vacancy you're filling, or you'll find yourself a permanent resident…of the Twilight Zone."_

"That was so awesome!" Kiba shouted, happily.

Although everyone liked the ride, Sasuke and Sakura looked liked they were ready to have a heart attack. "Well…that was more than…" panted Sasuke.

"Yeah," agreed Sakura. They both got up and got out of the elevator in a hurry.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

At the gift shop, Choji, Hinata and Naruto were looking through the many souvenirs they had on display. Naruto was looking at the on-ride photos.

Hinata was nearby. She picked up a plush toy of Stitch in a Hollywood Tower Hotel bellboy outfit. "This is kind of cute," she laughed. After seeing the one with everyone on-board, he bought several copies.

Everyone then met up with Naruto at the exit. Naruto started to laugh. "What's so funny?" Sasuke asked, annoyed.

"Sasuke, look at your face. You were screaming like a little girl," laughed Naruto. Sasuke then reached out at him. "Give me the picture!" demanded Sasuke.

"No way!" Naruto said. "I want everyone back at Konoha to know that Sasuke…OW!"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After Tower of Terror, they walked back down the street towards the center of the Hollywood Pictures Backlot. "Well that was…fun," said Tenten.

"I'm not going to reflect back on that attraction," Neji said.

"Come on Neji, were you that scared?" asked Tenten.

"It just caught me off guard, that's all," said Neji. "Let's do something a little calmer."

"Okay."

Neji and Tenten turned to the others. "If you need us, we'll be at Paradise Pier!"

"Just meet up with us at Toy Story Mania!" reminded Sakura.

"Well, Hinata and I are going to go and ride Soarin' over California," he said.

"Come on, Sakura. Let's go with Neji and Tenten to Paradise Pier," Sasuke said.

Everybody then split up and went to their separate ways, leaving Shikamaru and Ino alone. "So Ino," said Shikamaru. "I guess it's just you and me…again."

"You're saying that like it's a bad thing," remarked Ino.

"It's not," replied Shikamaru. "Anyway, I really need to do something a little calmer. Do you want to go see an Aladdin show?"

"Okay," Ino said.

The two then began walking over to the Hyperion Theater. "Hey Shikamaru," Ino said.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Umm…thanks for holding my hand on Tower of Terror," Ino said, blushing a bit. "It really did calm me down…at least before the drop."

"Really, I didn't know something that simple could help that much. Your hand was pretty soft though. I liked it."

"Oh! Well, thanks."

Shikamaru began blushing for a little bit. "_Wow…and I actually really do mean that,_" Shikamaru thought.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **Chapter four is now finished. Tenten and Naruto got wise to Sasuke and Sakura. I thought about making Sasuke a little sex-crazy, but I thought it made sense to keep it in, seeing as how he was chasing after Itachi for years, leaving no room for women.

Also, I made Shikamaru a little heartless in the first version. I'm planning on reworking it so he seems a little cruel.

The next chapter has musical numbers which I will keep in.

**NEXT TIME: **Hinata and Naruto take a musical flight on Soarin' over California!


	5. Having Fun at Paradise

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**NOTES: **Wow…it took me forever to finish up these two chapters. I guess Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years got in the way. But I'm back now with new re-written chapters!

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After everybody split up, Hinata and Naruto walked over to the Golden State District, where Soarin' Over California was located. Soarin' over California was a simulator that took guests on a hang-glider adventure over the Golden State, California. It was a very popular attraction, as it often saw some of the longest lines in the park.

Thankfully, Hinata and Naruto got to the ride in time, as the stand-by line was posted at the 35-minutes. Hinata looked at the building. "The building is so small," remarked Hinata. "How is anyone supposed to fly over California?"

"Beats me," Naruto said. "But then again, this entire place knows how to make you do stuff in small buildings."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After riding Tower of Terror, Neji, Tenten, Sakura, and Sasuke went over to the Paradise Pier section of the park, which was a recreation of the old beachside boardwalks, complete with a roller coaster, midway games, and carnival rides. As of now, they were re-constructing the Pier so that it resembles a Victorian beachside boardwalk.

The two big-ticket attractions in Paradise Pier were California Screamin', Disneyland's first looping roller coaster, and Toy Story Midway Mania, a new interactive shooting gallery attraction that opened in 2008.

However, one of the newest and most popular additions to California Adventure was "Disney's World of Color," a spectacular nighttime show featuring dancing water fountains, bright colorful lights, a beautiful soundtrack, and clips of various Disney movies.

Neji, Tenten, Sasuke, and Sakura watched as the mist screens and water fountains were being tested. "That looks awesome," commented Sakura.

"It does look impressive," Sasuke added.

"Well, I think I have seen enough of this. I'm in the mood for a ride," Neji said.

Neji looked up and saw the massive roller coaster in his sights. "Say Tenten, what do you say we take a ride on that?" asked Neji.

"Sir, why not?" Tenten replied, excitedly.

"I guess me and Sasuke will play some of the carnival games while we wait for everyone else," Sakura said.

They continued walking down the boardwalk until they parted ways at the entrance to the California Screamin' roller coaster.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Attention passengers, we are beginning boarding procedures. Please allow the cast members to direct you to your assigned seat._"

After the pre-flight safety video, Naruto and Hinata were guided into a rather large room. The gliders were on a flat ground, ready to be loaded with park guests. A giant blue circular screen was set up in the front of the building.

Hinata and Naruto took their seat in the middle front glider. They strapped in their seatbelts and waited patiently for the ride to start. They, along with the other park guests, were swinging the seats. Naruto turned to Hinata. "So, are you ready to fly in the skies?" Naruto asked.

Hinata looked up at the blue screen in front of her. "I still don't see how we're going to fly up in the sky," Hinata said.

"_Soarin' to Tower, we are ready for take-off._"

The room got dark and the music began warming up. The canopies on the gliders lowered themselves into position. The gliders were then lifted into the dark screen. Everybody's feet were hanging freely as they were suddenly transported into the clouds. "Wow," Hinata said, amazed.

"This is pretty cool," added Naruto.

They dipped through the clouds and flew over the Golden Gate Bridge. "Wow…this is amazing!" shouted Naruto.

"So, this is California?" Hinata asked. "It's such a beautiful place."

Soon, they were flying over Redwood Creek where people were river rafting and fishing. "Man, I can smell the pine needles," commented Naruto.

Hinata sniffed around. "Oh wow! You can!" she shouted.

The trip was enhanced by soft, gentle simulator motions and olfactory effects. The entire ride was synchronized to soft and gentle soundtrack. The rest of their flight included everyone nearly getting hit by a golf ball in Palm Springs, soaring over the heads of skiers in Lake Tahoe, smelling the fresh-grown oranges in Camarillo, and enjoying the majestic waterfall of Yosemite National Park.

"Hey, check out this out," Naruto said, as the glider was flying over the surfers of Malibu. Nearly everyone lifted their feet to avoid hitting the surfers.

As they were flying over the jammed freeways of Los Angeles, Hinata leaned in towards Naruto. "Wow, that was cool," Naruto said. "We just covered all of California in less than five minutes."

"California just seems like a beautiful place, if this ride is any indication," remarked Hinata.

Naruto and Hinata then looked in each other's eyes and shared a kiss as the ride ended with a heart-warming finale over Disneyland Park. A parade and fireworks show was going on at the time.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The stand-by line at California Screamin' was posted at 35 minutes, so Neji and Tenten didn't mind waiting.

Thankfully, the line was moving fast thanks to the ride's high riders-per-hour capacity. Neji and Tenten stood in line behind the others quietly. A few moments later, they reached the front of the line. The cast member send Neji and Tenten to the last row, meaning that Neji and Tenten were to be seated in the very last row.

In a blink of an eye, their red coaster train pulled up to the station. "Hmm…the wait time didn't seem that long," Tenten said. "It said 35 minutes, but it felt more like 20."

"I suppose the employees are on-top of crowd control today," remarked Neji.

The gates opened and Neji and Tenten took their seats. They reached up and lowered their restraints, which went over their shoulders. "Why do these things have shoulder restraints?" Neji asked.

"Because this ride takes you upside-down through a loop," explained Tenten.

"What?" Neji asked.

"You didn't see the loop?" Tenten asked.

"I did not, actually."

"So…now what? You're scared?" asked Tenten.

"Of course not!" Neji replied. "It's just…I've never been on a roller coaster with a loop."

"I'm sure it won't be so bad."

"_Okay screamers, let's get ready to roll!_"

The brakes hissed and the roller coaster moved forward. As with Space Mountain, California Screamin' also had an on-board sound system. The music played mellow and cheerful music as the coaster quickly went down a small slope. The coaster banked to the left, but it suddenly stopped as a coaster train was already in the launch zone.

Neji turned to Tenten. "This is going to be fun, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," replied Tenten. Tenten couldn't help but notice Neji smiling. "Hey…you're smiling!"

"Huh?" asked Neji.

"It's very rare that I see you smile," Tenten said. "It looks like you're actually starting to have fun."

"Well…it's been enjoyable," said Neji.

Neji then went back to his emotionless expression, much to Tenten's dismay.

Suddenly, the coaster moved forward into the launching zone. _"Get ready screamers! Head back, face forward and hang on."_

The train stopped, awaiting the cue to launch. Tenten looked out and saw Sasuke and Sakura standing near the pier railings, waiting in the long 60-minute line for Toy Story Midway Mania. "I can see Sakura and Sasuke are holding our spots for Toy Story Midway Mania," commented Tenten.

"Well, that's good," Neji said. That was all he had to say.

The music continued playing as Neji and Tenten remained quiet, waiting for the ride to start. Neji had some time to think to himself. "Hey," Neji said. Tenten turned to him. "Let's have some fun on this ride."

Tenten just smiled back at Neji.Neji placed his arms up in the air. Tenten was a bit confused. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"I heard that this was the way that you ride roller coasters, by putting your arms in the air," explained Neji.

Tenten giggled a bit, before placing her arms up high in the air.

"_Launching in 5…4…3…2…1!_"

Suddenly, the roller coaster was catapulted forward down the track and up the first hill. The force of the launch forced Neji and Tenten back into their seats…and then out of their seats as they went down the first hill. The soundtrack played a heavy rock 'n' roller song as the coaster continued down its path.

The track continued to take everyone around the Maliboomer attraction until it reached a small chain lift. The music changed to slow music as the coaster was slowly climbing up the first hill. Neji and Tenten took this time to catch their breath. "Wow…that was…more than what I expected," Neji said.

"Look at the view!" Tenten shouted.

From the top of the lift hill, they could see everything from California Adventure to Disneyland across the way. However, they didn't enjoy it for long. Both Neji and Tenten put their hands up in the air as the roller coaster made another long drop. The music switched back to the heavy rock guitar. The roller coaster passed over the loading area and into another straightaway. "Oh no," muttered Neji.

"Here comes the loop!" shouted Tenten.

Everyone screamed as the roller coaster made a small dip downwards. Neji and Tenten were forced back into their seats as they went through the big, vertical loop. The train entered a straightaway, slowing down a bit. "Well…that gave me a huge headache," complained Neji.

Tenten didn't hear him. The roller coaster went down another drop pass the Maliboomer. After circling around the Mailboomer towers for a second time, the ride went through a series of bunny hops, each time lifting everyone out of their seats. The ride ended with a final helix downwards before it slowly stopped. The music went back to being soft and mellow as the train slowly made its way back to the loading area.

"_Welcome back, screamers! Once your train comes to a complete stop, gather your personal belongings and exit out to your left hand side. Enjoy the rest of your stay here at Paradise._"

The train then made a complete stop and the shoulder restraints were lifted to allow people to get off. Tenten and Neji walked up the stairs and then back down to the photo booths, where everyone could buy a photo of them on the ride.

Neji and Tenten scanned through the various screens before finding their photo. Unfortunately, their faces were covered by their long hair, which had jumping all over the place. "Well it seems that our hair is in the way," complained Neji.

"Well, we can always just ride it again," suggested Tenten.

Neji grunted while grabbing his head. "What, you didn't like the ride?" Tenten asked.

"I liked it. It's just that the loop had some strong G-forces. It gave me a headache," Neji explained. "Anyway, we should probably meet up with Sasuke and Sakura at that Toy Story ride."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

Neji and Tenten then began walking over to Sasuke and Sakura, who had been waiting in line for Toy Story Midway Mania. As they were walking, Tenten began putting the braids back into her hair, much to Neji's dismay. "I don't see why you have to put your hair in buns," Neji said.

"I hate it when my hair gets in my eyes and I can't see anything," Tenten said. "It's not only annoying, it's also dangerous, especially when I'm on a mission."

"But you're not on a mission," replied Neji. "It's an amusement park. You're supposed to have fun."

"I'm having fun. I'm supposed that you are."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Neji asked.

"Well, I was amazed that you even agreed to go with me on this trip. But I'm glad you did. I mean, here, you seem to be having fun and you're cutting loose. It's much different from how you usually act, but I like it. I wish you would this way more often."

Neji thought to himself. "_She thinks I'm cutting loose! Yes! Naruto's advice is actually working out for me. I must repay him later on._"

Soon enough, the two met up with Sasuke and Sakura. On route, they passed by the ride's overflow entrance, where the waiting time was posted at 60 minutes. However, they continued down towards the end of the boardwalk, passing by the Audio-animatronics Mr. Potato Head, who was acting as a carnival barker. "_Chills! Thrills! Games that'll test you're skills! Step right up and try Midway Mania!_" Mr. Potato Head shouted.

"Hmm…that's pretty cool," commented Tenten.

"Hey guys!' shouted a familiar voice.

The two looked over and saw Sakura waving them over. She and Sasuke were farther down the line. "Hey guys!" Tenten said.

"How long have you guys been waiting for?" Neji asked.

"20 minutes," answered Sasuke. "The line is moving pretty fast, though. So, that's a good sign."

"How was the roller coaster?" asked Sakura.

"Fun," replied Tenten.

"It gave me a headache," added Neji.

"Why were you screaming throughout the entire thing?" Sasuke asked. "I could hear you from the bottom."

"I wasn't screaming," replied Neji. "You must have mistaken me with someone else. Lots of people's screams are similar."

"Yeah I guess," Sasuke said. "Besides you're not the kind of person who screams."

Neji took no notice of his comment. But Tenten began smiling. She was happy that she knew Neji a little more than other people did.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **This chapter originally had a song in it, but I decided to remove it. There's just something about it that I thought didn't fit, at least not with my current writing standards. As usual, fixed spelling and grammar mistakes, but I also squeezed in both chapters 5 and 6 in this chapter, because the next chapter will be dedicated to Toy Story Midway Mania, and perhaps the nighttime entertainment at California Adventure.

**NEXT TIME: **Old rivalries spark up at Toy Story Midway Mania as Naruto is paired up against Sasuke and Ino is against Sakura. It's going to be a really heated battle between these four.


	6. Toy Story Midway Mania!

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Mid-way Mania!_

_How could I make it any plain-nia?_

_So come on pal and step right up!_

_Make some noise…time to play along with all the toys!_

_You know, your life will never be mundane-nia!_

_When you play…_

_MID…WAY…MANIA!_

The audio-animatronics Mr. Potato Head stood out front of the attraction, singing and entertaining people waiting in the long line for Toy Story Midway Mania.

Toy Story Midway Mania opened in 2008 and kicked off the big billion-dollar renovation of Disney's California Adventure. On Midway Mania, park guests don 3-D glasses and board spinning vehicles that takes them through virtual carnival games hosted by characters from _Toy Story_.

Neji, Tenten, Sasuke, and Sakura had been holding everyone's places in line. Sasuke and Sakura, seeing as how they waited the longest, were growing tired of waiting. "How long have we been waiting for?" Sasuke asked.

"About 40 minutes," answered Sakura.

"And we're waiting in line because…?"

"Sasuke, just be patient. We only have 20 minutes left to go."

Suddenly, Naruto and Hinata finally arrived and met up with them. "Hey guys!" shouted Naruto.

"About time you showed up," complained Sasuke.

"We were held up," answered Hinata.

"Yeah, stupid High School Musical Pep Rally," added Naruto.

Hinata and Naruto jumped the chain-link fence and joined the others. "Where's everybody else?" asked Hinata.

"They should be coming any minute now," Sakura said.

At that moment, Shikamaru and Ino arrived. "What's your excuse for being late?" asked Neji.

"We saw that Aladdin show at the Hyperion Theater," answered Shikamaru. "It's not bad…for an amusement park."

"We also went to pick up FASTPASSes for Soarin' over California," said Ino.

"That ride is awesome," Naruto said. "You two will love it."

"I think Shikamaru will enjoy it the most," remarked Hinata.

"I hope it's that good," Shikamaru said.

"Hey guys!" called out Kiba.

Everyone saw Kiba, Akamaru and Choji walking up towards them. "Sorry for holding everybody up," apologized Kiba.

"Man, this park has some great food," Choji said, as he munched on a park hot dog. The three then joined everyone else in the waiting line. "I hope you're happy that me and Sakura held your guys' spots in line," Sasuke said, angrily.

"Um…yeah, really appreciate it," Naruto said, hastily.

"Gee thanks," Sasuke replied, sarcastically.

Soon enough, the group passed by the 3-D glasses and they each grabbed a pair for themselves. Then, they walked down the line, closer to the ride's boarding area. They all saw the colorful cannons placed on the front of each seat. "Cannons?" Neji asked. "Is this some sort of shooting ride?"

"Hey, just like Buzz Lightyear," remarked Naruto.

"I'm guessing you and the person next to you compete in a shooting game. Whoever has the most points at the end of the ride wins," explained Shikamaru.

"How do you know all that?" asked Ino.

"Am I seriously the only ones who read those little signs out front?" Shikamaru asked. "Anyway, seeing as how you have to do stuff, I'm not going to enjoy this."

"Come on Shikamaru!" Choji shouted. "Where's your competitive spirit? How about you and me go against each other on this ride?"

"Why?" Shikamaru asked. "I don't care if you beat me or not. I'll just let you win."

"Oh, you're no fun, Shikamaru," complained Ino.

"Hey Sasuke, how about you and me go against each other?" Naruto asked.

"Seriously?" Sasuke asked. "Do you really want me to embarrass you that bad?"

"You're not going to win. I'll have you know that while you were waiting in line for Space Mountain, I went on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters with Hinata. So I have some experience with shooting galleries," boasted Naruto.

"Oh really?" Sasuke asked. "I didn't hear you say that you beat Hinata."

"Well you didn't let me finish."

Naruto then turned to Hinata. Hinata then nodded her head approvingly. "Well…I wiped the floor with Hinata. I won 25,000 to 11,000."

"Yeah but…that's Hinata we're talking about. She probably let you win," Sasuke said. "I won't be easy on you."

"Oh yeah?!? Well, we'll see about that!" Naruto shouted.

Hinata and Naruto looked at each other again. They smiled before turning away. "Well Hinata," Kiba began. "Don't pretend like no one noticed that little nod between you and Naruto."

"What do you mean?" Hinata replied, trying to play dumb.

"So, it was you who actually defeated Naruto on this Buzz Lightyear ride," Kiba said. "Hmmm…I didn't know you were good at something like a shooting gallery. Then again, it is Naruto we are talking about."

Everyone then met up at the front of the line. They were all organized into eight different rows of two. It was going to be Sasuke VS Naruto, Neji VS Tenten, Ino VS Sakura, Shikamaru VS Choji, and Kiba (and Akamaru) VS Hinata. Their game trolleys pulled up to the loading area. The gates opened up and everyone sat down inside. As they lowered the lap bars, the cannons came down as well.

Everyone pulled their 3D glasses down in front of their eyes. Naruto turned to Sasuke. "Ready to lose, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, in a boastful way.

"Whatever. It's just an amusement park ride," Sasuke replied. "But don't cry if I beat you anyway."

Ino and Sakura were getting themselves situated in their seats. They sat across from Shikamaru and Choji. "Hey Ino!" shouted Shikamaru. "I hope you beat Sakura!"

"Ummm...thanks," Ino replied. "And I hope you beat Choji!"

"Wow...thanks for your support," Choji said, sarcastically.

Soon, Sakura and Ino's vehicle lurched into the ride itself. "Hmmmm..." Sakura murmured.

"What's your problem?" Ino asked.

"Why would Shikamaru wish you would beat me?"

"Maybe he hates you."

"Right, but something tells me you and Shikamaru got a little close while you two were by yourselves."

"WHAT?!? Me and Shikamaru?!? That would never happen!" protested Ino. "Shikamaru is a lazy bum. He would never make a good boyfriend...or husband."

"Right, just keep telling yourself that."

Meanwhile, Shikamaru was being interrogated by Choji. "How come you want Ino to win over Sakura?" he asked.

"I don't know," replied Shikamaru. "Ino's our teammate. Shouldn't we support her in what she does?"

"On a mission or a battle, then yes. But this is just an amusement park ride."

Choji thought to himself for a minute. He then smirked at Shikamaru. "Oh, I get it now. What you said back at Space Mountain and you two alone on the submarine ride...there's only one reason that could justify those actions. You like her, don't you?" Choji asked.

"What?!? Are you being serious?" Shikamaru asked. "I'll tell you what I told Neji on the bus...me and Ino would never have a happy life if we were a couple."

"Who are you trying to convince, Shikamaru? Me or you?"

Shikamaru looked away from his teammate and friend. "Just for the record," continued Choji, "I wouldn't mind if you and Ino were a couple. It wouldn't hurt me."

"Trust me. I can't imagine her and I being together."

"Well, you know what they say, opposites attract."

"That's just a saying, not an actual rule."

Their argument was prematurely ended when their ride vehicles lurched into the "practice room." Here, everyone was given a chance to get used to the ride's game mechanisms and work on their aim by tossing virtual pies at targets held by Woody, Buzz, Jessie, and Rex.

After everyone threw a few pies, their vehicles moved to the next game.

"_Good work! Star Command would be proud_," Buzz said to the riders.

"_Great shooting, partner!_" Woody added.

The vehicles spun around as "_You Got a Friend in Me_" played in the background. The toys were giving them some advice for getting higher scores on the attraction. The cars stopped in front of a screen, where everyone had to shoot eggs at farm animals. Unlike the last round, this one counted points. Everyone feverishly pulled on the pull-strings, shooting eggs trying to hit the biggest targets. The 3D glasses made everything look as if they were popping out of the screen.

Naruto and Sasuke were one of the fiercest competitors on the ride. "Hand getting tired yet, Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"Shut up, idiot!" Sasuke replied. "I'm just getting warmed up."

"Come on, Neji," Tenten said. "Is that all you got?"

"I'm just getting started," replied Neji.

_**5…4…3...2...1...Time's up!**_

The targets disappeared and the cars began to spin around again, moving on to the next game. In this game, they had to shoot darts at balloons. Again, everyone began racking up points at an intense rate…well, almost anyone.

Shikamaru was grabbing his points much slower than anyone else. Choji was ahead of Shikamaru, 12,950 to 1,500 points. "Come on Shikamaru," Choji said. "You're not even trying."

"I'm already bored by this," groaned Shikamaru.

"Why? This is actually pretty fun."

In the seats behind the two, Kiba and Hinata were having a friendly competition, popping balloons and winning points. "Man, this is fun!" Kiba said, happily.

"This is better than the Buzz Lightyear ride," added Hinata.

Suddenly, after Kiba popped a few balloons on the false cloud, the sound of thunder echoed and water splashed onto the two, surprising them both. "Whoa! What was that?" asked Kiba.

"Was that water?" Hinata asked.

"How did that happen?" Kiba asked.

But they had no time to find out. The ride vehicles quickly moved on to the next game. Now, they had to throw rocks and break glass plates. The game was led by the plastic Green Army Men. "_You are cleared to break plates,_" Sarge shouted.

Soon enough, the entire screen was filled with glass plates, some moving and some stationary. The balls began flying as everyone pulled on the pull-strings. Naruto and Sasuke continued their competition against each other. The scores were pretty even, with 32,220 (Sasuke) against 30,350 (Naruto).

"So much for a victory, huh Naruto?" asked Sasuke. "I'm not even trying to win and I can beat you!"

"Oh yeah?!? Just wait, Sasuke!" shouted Naruto.

"_I am not your mother. Break those plates!_" Sarge shouted.

Similar to Sasuke and Naruto, Ino and Sakura were also fiercely competing to accumulate points. Sakura was winning 25,036 to 20,900. "Come on Ino-pig," taunted Sakura. "You don't want to disappoint your boyfriend now, do you?"

"Shut up! Shikamaru is not my boyfriend!" Ino shouted, angrily.

The ride continued on with everybody participating in more virtual carnival games, from trying to throw rings around the Little Green Men to shooting rubber darts at an old Western town and gold mine. At the end of the ride, everyone was shown their scores. First were Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke's score was 117,900 while Naruto's score was 118,500. "Alright! I won!" Naruto shouted, happily.

"You got lucky. That's all," replied Sasuke.

Sakura and Ino were next to see their scores. The score: Sakura 209,600 and Ino 310,200. Ino smiled. "I told you I would win forehead-girl!" taunted Ino.

"Only because your boyfriend was nearby," Sakura said.

"I told you, Shikamaru is not my boyfriend!" Ino shouted, angrily.

After taking a look at their scores, everyone returned to the boarding area. They walked up a stairway and threw their 3D glasses into a barrel. "Well, that was fun," Choji said.

"It was better because I didn't have to wait in a long line," added Naruto.

"Ha…you're funny, you know that?" Sasuke asked, sarcastically.

"So how did you do, Shikamaru?" Ino asked.

"He lost to me," Choji remarked. "He wasn't even trying."

"Oh come on Shikamaru!" scolded Ino.

"Ino, you know I hate doing anything. I thought you knew me better

It was 7:45 p.m. The sun was beginning to set over Anaheim California. The lights were starting to turn on and the darkness was about to set in. "Man, it's starting to get dark already?" asked Naruto.

"Well…perfect time to call it a day," Neji said, as he stretched his arms up high in the air. "There really isn't anything else that I want to see."

"So…I guess we can just head back to the hotel until then," suggested Tenten.

"My legs are so tired from walking around so much," complained Sakura.

"Ummmm…me and Shikamaru still have the FASTPASSes for Soarin' over California, so we're going to stick around until then," Ino said.

"Oh…okay then," Sakura said, slyly. "You and Shikamaru can go ahead and have some alone time."

"You say that as if we were something of a couple," Shikamaru replied.

Sakura giggled quietly as she and everyone else began heading over back to the Grand Californian Hotel. However, Shikamaru and Neji faced each other for a brief moment. Shikamaru smirked at him, infuriating Neji to some extent. Shikamaru and Ino were left by themselves in the middle of the Golden State District.

"I wonder where Sakura got the idea that you and me are together as a couple," pondered Shikamaru

"Hey Shikamaru," interrupted Ino, trying to change the subject, "isn't it time to use the Soarin' FASTPASSes?"

Shikamaru reached into his pocket and took out the FASTPASSes he received from earlier. He checked the return times. "These things aren't good until 8:30 p.m. tonight," Shikamaru said.

"So we still have some time, huh?" Ino asked. "What else is there to do?"

Shikamaru then began thinking of an idea. "I got an idea," Shikamaru said. He grabbed Ino's hand and dragged her towards the park's main entrance plaza. "Hey, what are you doing?" Ino asked.

"Just follow me," replied Shikamaru.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Naruto and Hinata opened the door to the hotel room. Naruto instantly hopped onto the bed and stretched his limbs. "Oh man…I'm so tired," he groaned.

"We did a lot today, didn't we?" Hinata asked.

Hinata then lied down beside Naruto and placed her arm across his chest, hugging him. Naruto smiled as he gently began stroking her long hair. "You know, I'm glad you decided to come with me on this trip," Naruto said.

"Of course. I would never miss a chance to spend time with you. I love you."

Naruto laughed to himself for a bit. "You know, it's funny…" Naruto said. "A few years ago, you couldn't even talk to me without stuttering. Hey…how long have we been dating?"

"Ummm…almost four years," answered Hinata.

"Really? That long?"

Naruto remained looking up at the ceiling of the room. "Does your dad still hate me?" asked Naruto. Hinata was a bit surprised by his question. "Ummm…well…" Hinata hesitated. "That's not important. What's important is that I love you."

"Hinata, can you please answer my question?" Naruto asked.

Hinata began thinking to herself for a moment. The Hyuga family is not on good terms with Naruto, except for Hinata herself, her sister Hanabi, and her cousin Neji. Even if the village is beginning to trust Naruto a little more, the Hyuga family's feelings remain the same: Naruto is nothing more than the carrier of the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon.

"I'm sorry Naruto," Hinata finally said.

Naruto grew a little bit upset. "Hmmm…I guess nothing changed since the last time I met him," Naruto said. "I wonder what would happen if I tried to ask him for his blessings?"

"Blessings? For what?" Hinata asked.

"For marrying you, of course," Naruto said.

Hinata choked up for a moment. "M-M-Marrying me?!? Now?!?" Hinata asked.

"What?!? No, of course not yet. But there's going to be a time when I would want to. I mean, don't you want to marry me?"

"Well…of course…but let's enjoy what we have now. Don't worry about my family's opinion for now."

"Yeah…I guess you're right," agreed Naruto.

The two then spend the rest of the evening next to each other, staring at the ceiling.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Disneyland proudly presents our spectacular festival pageant of nighttime magic and imagination in thousands of sparkling lights and electro-syntho-magnetic musical sounds…Disney's Electrical Parade!_"

Thousands of park-goers, who all lined up along the pathways between Grizzly Peak and 'a bug's land,' cheered loudly as the lights turned off and the corridor went dark. _Baroque Hoedown_ began to echo throughout the park. The Electrical Parade was taking place. Disney's Electrical Parade was a parade that used many tiny electrical lights that went off to the background music.

Everyone was amazed as the tiny twinkling lights sparkled, standing out in the darkness. Shikamaru and Ino were amongst those on the streets watching the floats with interest. "Wow…this is really cool," Ino said.

"I know. I told you it would be," Shikamaru replied.

"I mean…there are so many little lights. It's just so awesome."

"It definitely is mesmerizing."

"You know, these parade floats are a lot like clouds. You just sit down and watch as they slowly go by. I guess that's why you like parades."

"Wow…I actually never thought of it like that. I'm amazed at how well you know me."

"I've known you for a long time now…and this vacation just reinforces everything I know about you. I know that you hate doing stuff, like on Toy Story Mania. You rather watch stuff go by, like the Submarine Voyage and this parade. And you don't like roller coasters because the scenery goes by too fast and jerky to enjoy them."

Shikamaru just smiled. "_Wow…she really DOES know me_," Shikamaru thought.

"Hey Shikamaru," Ino said.

"Yeah, what is it?" Shikamaru asked.

"Why did you come here with us?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"Well…I'm still a bit surprised you even agreed to come here with us. You're a lazy person. I don't see you as the kind of guy who is willing to spend hours fighting through the crowds and standing in line."

"You know, I'll admit something Ino. At first, it's just because you nagged me to go."

"I didn't nag you!"

"Hey! Let me finish! You're right. I hate going to amusement parks for all of the reasons you listed. I can't wait in line for very long and I hate rude people who push and shove you. But, you kind of helped me enjoy my time here. There are a lot of theater shows, parades, and sit-down rides where you can just sit down and let everything pass by."

Ino smiled at him. "I knew you would find something to like here," she said. She then wrapped her arms around Shikamaru, surprising him. "You know, I'm glad you came with me. I feel like I know you a lot better than I did before," Ino said.

Then, to his surprise, Shikamaru began feeling his face getting a bit hot. Nonetheless, he got his mind off it and focused back on the parade, which was now in its last float, a patriotic float that had a long American flag.

After the parade, many people clapped and cheered before they started to head towards the park exit. "Well, maybe now we can call it a day," Shikamaru said.

"Umm…Shikamaru," Ino said.

Shikamaru turned to her. She waved the Soarin' FASTPASSes in his face. "Oh right, we still have those," Shikamaru said.

"Let's do this now before heading back to the hotel room," suggested Ino. "I got a good feeling you'll enjoy it."

"Yeah…something tells me I probably will."

"So let's go!" Ino said.

The two then began heading over to Soarin' over California. On the way, Shikamaru got closer to Ino and grabbed her hand. Ino looked down at her hand and began blushing. She looked up at Shikamaru's face. He just gave her a cocky smirk. Ino turned away, still blushing. Shikamaru began thinking to himself. "_Ha-ha, looks like I'm winning Neji,_" he thought. But then he began feeling a little bit of regret. "_Umm…yeah, I'm winning._"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **This chapter originally had a song in it too, but I decided to move it. There's just something about it that I thought didn't fit…ah, you know the drill. As usual, fixed spelling and grammar mistakes, squeezed in both chapters 5 and 6 into one chapter…yadda, yadda, yadda.

Anyway, as I said before, I am planning to fix the Shikamaru x Ino drama that takes place later on. I did get a lot of criticism for its…umm…I don't know. It asked more questions than it answered. I have ideas, but they are subject to change.

**NEXT TIME: **After getting a good night's rest, the gang is up-and-running back to Disneyland Park. The first ride they see and go on first…the Indiana Jones Adventure!


	7. Indiana Jones Adventure

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**NOTES: **Damn, I am taking longer to remake this than I thought. Well anyway, here is the remade chapter 7!

The main reason why these chapters took forever to redo was because of the Neji/Tenten and Shikamaru/Ino drama. The original was horribly-written and not very well thought out. I wanted to do this right. I hope you guys like it!

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto, and the Disneyland Resort and its Disney characters are owned by the Walt Disney Company. Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and A Bug's Life are owned by Pixar and The Twilight Zone is owned by CBS.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Alright! It's the second day of our Disneyland trip!" Naruto shouted, happily. "The sun is shining…and there is barely anybody here at the park! Let's have some fun now!"

"Oh god, shut up!" shouted Shikamaru, angrily. "It's way too early to deal with you right now!"

After having spent the day at Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure yesterday, everybody was revisiting the Disneyland Park to check out some of the attractions that they missed yesterday due to the crowds being horrendous.

The group briskly walked down Main Street U.S.A. and crossed over the bridge into Adventureland, an area themed to the jungles of the world. As they walked past the Enchanted Tiki Room, Sakura and Ino began talking about a certain lazy ninja. "So, did you and Shikamaru go on Soarin' over California?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, it was a fun ride," replied Ino.

"Did Shikamaru enjoy it?"

"Of course he did. He likes slow rides. He told me when we were on the submarine ride."

"You know, the Electric Parade was running that night. Did you manage to see that?"

"We…managed to find a good spot. It was an alright parade. But I can really tell Shikamaru was enjoying himself."

"Which is funny, considering that before he didn't want to go on this trip," Sakura said.

"Yeah, I had to nag him to get him to come on this trip," mentioned Ino.

"Same here," replied Sakura.

Everyone continued passed the Enchanted Tiki Room. "You know, I kept teasing you about it, but I really do think you and Shikamaru could be a happy couple," Sakura said.

"And I already told you that Shikamaru is too much of a lazy bum to be a good boyfriend…or husband," replied Ino.

"Well…it seems like you two are getting close," Sakura said. "I can imagine you guys living a happy life together. And because you personalities are so opposite from one another, you sort of complete each other."

"You really are looking too much into this. You can't pull that 'opposites attract' thing on me."

"Just admit that you like Shikamaru."

"And just admit that while we were waiting at California Adventure, you and Sasuke were having some _**fun**_ back in your room."

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, a bit defensively.

Ino then leaned in closer towards Sakura's ear. "Tenten and I know what you were really doing," she whispered. Sakura's eyes grew wide and her face blushed red. "You don't hide it very well," Ino added.

Sakura decided to end her conversation there.

Soon enough, everyone reached the Indiana Jones Adventure. They could only see the entrances of the stand-by and FASTPASS lines. Curious, they all entered the waiting line, where they saw rustic equipment as well as the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. The temple towered above the line. "Hmm…so this is the Indiana Jones Adventure?" asked Neji.

"What kind of ride do you think it is?" asked Tenten.

"Beats me," Neji replied. "Chances are it's a thrill ride. But I must admire this place for their ability to keep us in suspense."

"Yeah," replied Tenten.

"It's almost like…an adventure," smiled Neji.

Tenten laughed quietly. "What are you laughing about?" Neji asked.

"I'm just surprised at how much more…relaxed you are ever since coming here," explained Tenten.

"Well…why not?" Neji asked. "I'm on vacation."

"I think there is more to it than that," Tenten said.

"What do you mean?"

"You say you loosened up because you are on vacation, but I think you have another reason."

"I can't say."

"Why not?"

"I just don't want to admit it."

"Don't be embarrassed. Just tell me."

"Maybe later..."

As the group continued up a wooden ramp, up towards the entrance of the temple, Hinata noticed the stone structures that represented snakes. They were intimidating. They send shivers down Hinata's spine. Naruto (of course) noticed it. "Something wrong, Hinata?" asked Naruto.

"I'm just...is this ride another dark roller coaster?" asked Hinata.

"Hey, come on Hinata," Kiba butted in. "What are you scared? It's nothing we can't handle."

"I don't know," Hinata said.

"I kind of like how Disney hides the actual ride from everyone else," Naruto said, confidently. "It makes everything seem suspenseful...like an actual adventure! I actually have a good idea right now."

Naruto then stepped over the chain and walked away from everybody else. "Hey where are you going?" Kiba asked.

"Just want to get a few things from the gift shop. Be right back!" Naruto shouted.

The line continued moving forward until everybody was at the entrance of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. "Huh...I wonder what the Forbidden Eye is." Sakura asked.

"Probably treasure," Tenten answered.

"It could be an ancient artifact," added Choji.

"Or it's probably just some old movie prop," Shikamaru said, unemotionally.

Suddenly, a whip cracked near everybody. Everyone was startled. "There's only one way to find out about the Forbidden Eye. We have to trek down the dark hallways and fond it ourselves.

Everybody turned and saw Naruto, standing there. He had just changed his outfit. His orange jacket and pants changed to brown and he wore a brown Fedora hat (with his headband on the brim of it). Everyone looked at him as if he had lost his mind.

"What the hell are you wearing?" asked Kiba

"Naruto," said Hinata. "You look just like Indiana Jones."

"I know," replied Naruto. "I have his adventurous spirit inside of me. You can call me Naruto Jones."

"Why Naruto Jones?" asked Kiba.

"Because Indiana Uzumaki doesn't sound good. Now let's get on that Indiana Jones Adventure," he said, heroically.

Despite Naruto acting silly, they decided to follow him in.

Inside the temple, the hallways were barely illuminated by the flame from the torches. The temple was filled with booby traps and other dangerous. Naruto moved with caution, acting as if anything could fall on him. "Naruto, cut the goofy act already!" complained Shikamaru.

"We're getting closer to the Forbidden Eye," Naruto remarked.

"You really aren't listening to me, are you?" Shikamaru asked.

Hinata was still a little worried about the ride. "Naruto," said Hinata softly.

"Yes, Hinata," said Naruto.

"What do you think this will be like? The ride I mean?" she asked.

"I have no clue what we will be subjected to," Naruto answered. "But it's fun to guess and then discover what we might find. Come on, Hinata! Let's both discover what lies ahead together."

Naruto then extended on his hand out towards Hinata. "Come on, let's find us some treasure!" he offered. "I'll give you half of it."

Hinata smiled back at him. "Oh, cut it out already!" snapped Shikamaru.

"What's your problem?" asked Naruto, angrily. "You've been cranky every since this morning!"

"Do you even realize that you're acting like an annoying child with that stupid outfit?" Shikamaru asked, angrily.

"He's just having some fun. Calm down Shikamaru," pleaded Hinata.

Shikamaru just let out a frustrated sigh. Ino was worried. As they continued down the waiting line, Ino leaned in closer towards Shikamaru. "What the hell is with your bad attitude?" she asked.

"I just hate how Naruto is acting like such a child," explained Shikamaru.

"You should be used to it by now. You seem crankier than usual. Something tells me that you didn't get any sleep last night."

"Look! I just hate getting up in the morning."

"I do too, but even I'm not as bad as you."

"You are sometimes."

"Well, everybody has to get up early. More often than not, they don't have these problems."

"Grrr…I didn't want to wake up early just so I can ride some jerky thrill ride," admitted Shikamaru.

"Well…would it have been if we went on a slow ride?"

"Maybe…"

Ino sighed. "Well, how about this? After Indiana Jones, we will find a nice, slow ride. We'll sit down and you can catch up on sleeping."

"Don't patronize me."

"Hey, I'm offering you a good thing here!"

"Look you don't have to do that for me."

"I willl...if it gets you to calm down."

Shikamaru turned away, still a bit upset.

Soon, everybody reached a narrow room where spikes adorned it. They were pointed spikes from the ceiling and from the floor. There was a warning sign that stated, "**Do not step on the stones with diamonds.**"

"Okay everybody, don't step on the diamond stones," warned Naruto.

"You guys can't be serious," said Neji. "Everything here is not real. Look."

Neji then stepped on a stone tile with a diamond engraved on it. Everybody panicked a bit. Neji looked back at the group and smirked. "See? Nothing happened!"

Suddenly, the walls rumbled and creaked as if they were going to cave in. "The walls are closing in!" shouted Naruto. He then grabbed Akamaru. "Quick! Prop up Akamaru to save ourselves!" said Naruto.

"Hey, put him down you idiot!" Kiba shouted, angrily.

The noise then ceased. Everyone looked around and saw that everything remained the same. "Uhh...okay, let's move on," said Sasuke.

"And don't step on anymore stones!" warned Ino.

After trekking through the rest of the waiting line and watching the safety video, they reached the loading area. Naruto, Hinata, Neji and Tenten were lucky to get the front row, while Sasuke, Sakura, Ino and Shikamaru got the next row.

The ride vehicles were dirty and beaten-up jeeps. The wheels were oversized and the jeep was big enough to seat twelve people.

Their vehicle pulled up to the loading station. The gates opened and everyone stepped onboard. "Alright! Let's see what this baby can do!" Naruto said, excitedly.

Akamaru was again left with the Disney people. Everyone took their seats, fastened their seatbelts and was ready for the ride. Naruto got the seat with the (nonfunctioning) steering wheel. He then looked at Hinata. "Are you nervous?" Naruto asked Hinata.

"Not anymore. Now that you're here," said Hinata. Naruto smiled as the vehicles pulled up to the seatbelt check.

"Ready, Shikamaru?" Ino asked.

"Let's just get this over with," groaned Shikamaru.

Shikamaru then turned to Ino, who was now feeling down. Shikamaru then felt guilty. "You know what?" Shikamaru asked. "This isn't right."

"What do you mean?"

"You have been trying to help me and all I have done is snap at you. That's not right at all. You deserved better than that."

Ino raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you sure you're still not sleepy?" Ino asked.

"No, I'm speaking the truth here," replied Shikamaru. "I'm already on the ride. I'm going to enjoy it as much as I can."

Ino smiled a bit as she grabbed onto the handlebar in front of her. Neji turned back. He had witnessed the conversation that took place between the two just now. "_Well Shikamaru," _thought Neji, "_you think you can win this challenge? Spout a few lines here and there. Well, I'll admit that you seem to know what you are doing, but I'll be the true winner when this is over."_

Neji turned to Tenten, who sat next to him. Neji looked at her and smiled. He looked to the floor of the ride vehicle and frowned. He let out a depressed sigh, which grabbed her attention. "Something wrong, Neji?" Tenten asked.

"No," replied Neji. "It's nothing that you should be concerned with."

After the seatbelt check, it was time to hit the road. The jeep bucked and pitched and the headlights flickered as it drove itself into the temple. _"Hello? Hello? Oh, my friends. The brakes may be needing a little adjustment. Easy on the curves,"_warned Sallah.

The speakers placed in the jeep played ominous and mystical music. In front of them, there were three doors. One labeled "knowledge", another "riches", and the last door labeled "youth". The jeep continued to drive itself as the idol of Mara began to speak.

"_You seek the treasure of Mara, jewelry and gold. It is yours,"_ boomed Mara.

The door then opened and the jeep lurched forward. It climbed a small incline. In front of them was the idol of Mara. Everybody stood there in amazement. "That's pretty cool," commented Shikamaru.

"_FOOLISH MORTALS!"_ shouted the idol, in an angry rage. _"You have looked into my eyes! Your path now leads to the gates of doom!"_

"Uh-oh," whimpered Choji.

The jeep then made a hard left. It went down a golden hallway, but then it made another hard left into a dark and sinister chamber. Everyone held on as the ride became wild and jerky. "I knew this was a thrill ride," called out Neji.

"Oh man, you guys screwed up," Naruto remarked.

"What do we do now Mr. Indiana Jones?" asked Ino, sarcastically.

Down alongside the track, there was Indiana Joes trying to keep the doors closed. "Who's that guy?" asked Naruto.

"That's Indiana Jones, the _real_Indiana Jones," answered Sakura.

"_Tourists, you had to look!" _Indiana Jones_ s_aid sternly.

"I'm more real than that guy," said Naruto.

The jeep made a small climb. They entered another room, where a rock skull loomed over a rope bridge, which on turn allowed passage over molten lava. The skull shot beams of light at the jeep. The jeep quickly turned left into a room of skeletons of those who were not able to survive. The jeep continued rocking back and forth, tossing its passengers. "Woohoo!" Kiba shouted.

"Hold on!" shouted Hinata.

The jeep then slowed down. Spiders and bugs were projected on the walls. "Ew! Bugs!" said Ino.

"Where's Shino when I need him?" asked Kiba.

The jeep turned a corner and began crossing a rocky bridge. Everybody went to near panic when the jeep stopped about halfway. "Ah! What happened?" Sakura asked.

"What did you do, idiot?" asked Sasuke.

"I don't know," replied Naruto. "This crazy thing has a mind of its own."

Eventually, the jeep resumed motion. This time, it went faster and rocked more violently. The next room scared _'Naruto Jones'_ a little bit. A thick tail snake sent shivers down our hero's spine.

_"Snakes, why did it have to be snakes?"_

A giant snake with glowing red eyes appeared before everyone. It hissed before it lunged forward and tried to eat everyone. They continued their jerky ride through the temple. They passed by a stream of fire and a room full of rats, all while the John Williams-composed music played in the background.

After the rat room, the vehicle then started to go slower. It continued rocking as powerful bursts blew into everybody's faces. "Poison darts!" shouted Tenten.

After escaping the dart room, the jeep stopped. There was Indiana Jones, this time hanging from the ceiling. "Ow! I think that last dart was a real one," joked Sasuke.

"Naruto, you suck at driving!" shouted Sakura.

"Well, this is turning out to be quite the adventure," breathed Shikamaru.

"_Uh oh! Back up! Back up!"_ shouted Indiana Jones. The jeep backed up as everyone looked up and were shocked at the sight. A 5-ton boulder was heading straight to our heroes. Everybody screamed as the jeep ducked into a secret hole under the boulder at the last second.

The jeep made a U-turn. Indiana Jones stood next to the boulder, tired and out of breath. "_Not bad...for a couple of tourists,"_ he said.

Everybody then cheered and applauded as the jeep pulled into the unloading area. Everyone exited the vehicle and began walking down the hallways. "Yep, you guys are safe, thanks to me, Naruto Jo-"

He was interrupted when Sakura hit him so hard in the head, he saw birdies. "Naruto, you idiot! You are the worst driver ever! You nearly got us killed!" she shouted.

"It was still a fun ride, though," said Hinata.

As they were leaving the ride, Sasuke kept checking his neck. "Sasuke, trust me," said Sakura. "There is no poison dart in your neck. You said it yourself. Everything is fake."

"Are you sure?" Sasuke asked.

"Are you being serious or are you just trying to have some fun?"

"I'm...just messing around. Of course, I don't think any of this is real." Nevertheless, Sasuke continued checking his neck, nervously.

"Wow...that was such a fun ride!" Tenten shouted, happily.

"It caught me by surprise," said Neji. "Wasn't expecting for it to toss me around like it did, but it was an enjoyable ride.

After exiting the temple, everyone walked past Tarzan's Treehouse and into New Orleans Square/Frontierland. "Hey Shikamaru, look!" called out Ino, as she pointed towards the Rivers of America. "Here's something you might like. It's a boat ride. Wanna do it?"

"I could go for something a little less jerky," Shikamaru yawned.

Naruto looked around and saw Splash Mountain in the distance, looming over the Haunted Mansion. "Hey Hinata, let's go and ride Splash Mountain," suggested Naruto.

"Okay," Hinata responded.

"Well, you guys can go on Splash Mountain. Me and Sasuke will go on Big Thunder Mountain," said Sakura.

"Come on, Tenten. Let's go to the Haunted Mansion," said Neji.

"Well, you know where me and Choji will be," Kiba said.

"Stealing food?" asked Ino, a bit annoyed.

"I heard the Blue Bayou is one of the best eateries here," remarked Choji. "And we get to eat for free!"

"Choji, sooner or later, you and Kiba will be caught and you're going to get into a lot of trouble," warned Shikamaru.

"We don't plan on getting caught," boasted Kiba.

"Come on Choji, just give this up now," pleaded Ino.

"Forget it Ino, if they get busted, it's his own fault," said Shikamaru.

Soon, everybody split apart and went their different ways. Since Naruto, Hinata, Neji, and Tenten were going to the same area of the park, they traveled together in a group.

Once they reached the entrance for the Haunted Mansion, Neji and Tenten broke away from Naruto and Hinata.

As they were waking over to the entrance of Splash Mountain, Hinata reached over and wrapped herself around Naruto's left arm. "Naruto, thank you," said Hinata.

"For what?" he asked, kindly.

"For inviting me on this trip," explained Hinata.

"Well...I couldn't enjoy a vacation if you weren't with me."

"I hope my father doesn't get angry at me," muttered Hinata.

"Huh?"

"Oh...it's nothing. Actually, can you do something for me?" she asked.

"Sure, what do you want me to do?" Naruto asked.

"Can you stop the Naruto Jones act and go back to Naruto Uzumaki?" she asked.

"Yeah...I guess it was kind of silly."

"Then why did you wear back at the ride?"

"I just felt like it. But if you think I should take it off...just give me a minute."

He then swiftly took off his Indiana Jones outfit, revealing his regular clothes underneath. Naruto and Hinata continued on their way to Critter Country, home to Splash Mountain.

Since it was a very hot summer day, Splash Mountain would be very crowded. But fortunately, Naruto and Hinata were able to get there before the crowds did, resulting with them only waiting for 35 minutes.

Naruto and Hinata got closer to the loading area. Naruto was surprised to see that Hinata was calm.

"You're not scared?" Naruto asked her.

"No," Hinata replied, calmly.

"Really. Huh…"

"I mean, it's a just a long ride with only one drop. That's not too bad right?" Hinata asked.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_And now...a carriage approaches to take you away…"_ a spooky voice said as dozens of guests walked down a dark hallway.

Neji and Tenten were among the crowd as they walked through the dark and spooky hallways of the Haunted Mansion, one of the classic Disneyland attractions.

After passing by the changing portraits, they turned around a corner and saw the "doombuggies" quickly go down a flight of stairs down to the loading area. "This is quite the attraction," Neji said. "They really went out of their way to make this look very creepy."

"I know, it's amazing right?" Tenten asked.

The two approached their "doom buggy" and quickly hopped on the continuous loader. The lap bar was lowered down and the buggy swiveled a bit as it went up the stairs. The Ghost Host began to narrate their ride.

"_We find it delightfully unlivable here. Every room has wall-to-wall creeps and hot-and-cold running chills. Sssshhh...listen..."_

The doom buggy quickly turned so that Neji and Tenten could look an endless hallway, where a candelabrum floated in mid-air. "That's pretty neat," commented Tenten.

The doombuggies continued past the conservatory and true hallways. It then began to circle around Madame Leota, a floating head in a crystal ball. She continued chanting as the doombuggies swiveled to face her.

"_Serpents and spiders_," Leota chanted. "_Tales of a rat...call in the spirits wherever they'll at!_"

"I like how they created the crystal ball lady," Neji said.

Suddenly, everything went quiet and the doombuggies stopped. An announcement came over the speakers.

"_Playful spooks have interrupted our tour. Please remain seated in your doombuggy. We will proceed with our tour in just a moment._"

"What happened?" Tenten asked.

"I don't know," replied Neji. "I don't believe the ride broke down. They probably stopped it for some handicapped person. I'll start back up in a few moments."

The two remained quiet as the music and sound effects returned. The doombuggies remained where they were. Neji quickly looked over at Tenten. "Hopefully, the ghosts don't come to try and possess us," he remarked.

Tenten giggled a bit. "You know, I still don't know why you're acting like this, but either way, I'm happy to see that you're having some fun here," Tenten said. "I just wonder why you don't act like this back at Konoha."

"It's...there is no reason, really."

"I just want to know why you are always so quiet and reserved back home."

"It's just that the Hyuga clan sort of...I have always been like this. After my father was killed, I trained rigorously with strict discipline and focus. I guess I never had a moment where I could just act out and have fun."

Tenten's mood dropped as she saw Neji thinking back to his childhood years. While other child would frolic around and be happy, Neji would constantly train and work to meet the high standards of the Hyuga clan. Neji turned and saw how unhappy she was. He reached up and grabbed her chin. He lifted her head up and smiled. "Hey, don't let them ruin our fun," remarked Neji. "They're back at Konoha. They can't stop us here. So let's just...have as much fun as we can and be happy. Right?"

Tenten cheered up as she looked into Neji's eyes. "You know what, you're right," she said. "We can't let what problems we have at home ruin this day for us."

After that, the doombuggies began moving again. Neji and Tenten continued to watch as ghosts danced in the dining room and the ghost of a bride bared an axe as the riders passed by her.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **I recently have finished taking a "Creative Writing" class at my school, so I'm hoping that my writing has improved, especially compared to the original story.

**NEXT TIME: **Shikamaru and Ino rides on the Mark Twain Riverboat. While resting, Shikamaru reveals his feelings for Ino Yamanaka. But he is still conflicting on whether it's his actual feelings or he is just saying that to win his challenge.

Neji is also feeling the same way. After seeing how happy Ino is with Shikamaru, he believes that it is for the best to tell Ino what is really going on…


	8. Zip a Dee Do Dah Day

"Ninja Love"

By MisterAnimeFan

**A/N: **Grrr...why is taking so long to finish? I don't know...

Anyway, I should tell you guys that I edited chapter 5 so that World of Color was already finished. I wanted to include that show in this fanfiction.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Over in Critter Country, Naruto and Hinata had boarded their log on Splash Mountain. The two sat in the middle rows. The seating was one-behind-another, similar to the Matterhorn Bobsleds. After a quick safety check, the log lurched forward out into the water. A conveyor belt carried the log up the first hill. The log continued floating down the flume, passing by Splash Mountain's signature 45-foot drop.

After going up another small lift, the log floated past Brer Rabbit's house, which was boarded up. A sign next to it said that he was "gone for good." The flume's walls were short enough for the riders to look over and see the other sights of Disneyland. "Hey, I can see the Matterhorn from here!" Hinata shouted.

Soon, everybody screamed as the log suddenly made a sudden drop into the dark room. Only a few were splashed. The room contained singing animals and birds. Amongst them who were not singing were Brer Fox and Brer Bear. They were planning to capture Brer Rabbit. Fortunately, their plans usually backfired.

"This is pretty neat," Hinata said.

"Ha! Look at that stupid bear!" laughed Naruto as he saw Brer Bear tangled in his own trap.

The log then made another sudden drop down, then up, and down again. This time an even bigger splash was created, covering both Naruto and Hinata. "Ah! This water is freezing!" cried Naruto.

The atmosphere of the ride suddenly changed from bright and upbeat to dark and dreary. Everyone was crying. "This is a bit different," commented Hinata.

But then, their log began to go up a rather long climb. "Oh man!" Naruto said, excitedly. "We're at the big drop! Get ready!"

On the side was Brer Rabbit, trapped in a puddle of honey. He was caught in Brer Fox's trap! Brer Fox had him in his grasps. "Whatever you do, don't throw me down into the Briar Patch!" pleaded Brer Rabbit.

Soon the log reached the top of the hill. Everyone held on and screamed as the log went down a steep hill and into the Briar Patch. Water flew up into everybody's faces as the log hit the bottom.

After passing the last scenes of the ride, their log reached the unloading station. Naruto and Hinata carefully stepped out their log and began walking down the exit. They stopped for a moment to see their on-ride photos that was taken right before the drop.

"Ah man!" complained Naruto, "I can't believe how wet I got."

"It...it is called Splash Mountain," reminded Hinata. "Were you expecting to come out dry?"

"I guess not, but I underestimated how much water there was going to be."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Secure all cargo! All passengers aboard! Value man, cast odd bow lines! Engine room, ahead three quarters!"_

The steam whistle sounded and the bell rang. The Mark Twain Riverboat began to leave the dock and start on its trip around Tom Sawyer Island.

After the Indiana Jones Adventure, Shikamaru and Ino walked over to the Mark Twain Riverboat. Because of the boat's rather large capacity, there was no waiting at all. The ship then began to slowly float down the Rivers of America around Tom Sawyer's Island.

Ino and Shikamaru found a spot on the front deck of the riverboat. They sat down in the chairs provided. Shikamaru took up two of them so that he could lie down and sleep. "How long is this ride?" Shikamaru asked.

"I don't know," Ino replied. "The boat is going pretty slow, though."

The boat continued down the river, pass Critter Country. Shikamaru took a deep breath as he relaxed on his seat. "This is so relaxing," he sighed.

"Hey," Ino said.

Shikamaru lifted his head up and turned to Ino. "Why don't you put your head on my lap?" offered Ino.

"No thanks," refused Shikamaru. "I'm fine."

"It's okay. I just want to make you feel relaxed."

"I'm already relaxed, thank you."

"Shut up and put your damn head on my lap."

"No really, I'm fine."

"Shikamaru, if you don't do as I say, I'll snap your neck."

Shikamaru reluctantly situated his head on her lap. "There, how hard was that?" Ino asked. Shikamaru didn't answer. He wiggled his head, trying to make himself comfortable.

Shikamaru continued to relax and stare up in the clouds. He watched the clouds go by, with the occasional trees getting in the way. "Hmm...this is actually nice," Shikamaru said.

"See?" asked Ino.

"But I'm just worried about people seeing us as a couple."

"What?"

"Well, I mean only people who are boyfriend-and-girlfriend do stuff like this."

"Well...just let people think that. We don't even know these people anyway."

"Yeah, but...we would know."

"Do you think we're boyfriend-and-girlfriend?" Ino asked.

"Not really," Shikamaru answered.

"Then, don't worry about it."

"Still..."

"Just shut up and look at the clouds."

Shikamaru did as he was told and he looked up at the clouds passing by. "How do you feel?" asked Ino.

"It's peaceful," commented Shikamaru. He remained on her lap, looking at the clouds and tree tops pass by. Ino looked up and watched all of the children running around on Tom Sawyer Island. "Hey Shikamaru, we should check out that island and see what's there," Ino said. Shikamaru didn't answer her. "Shikamaru, are you listening to me?"

Ino looked down at her lap and saw that Shikamaru had his eyes shut. "_He's asleep already?_" she asked to herself. However, Ino could only smile as Shikamaru continued sleeping on her lap. Ino raised her hand up and began to stroke Shikamaru's hair. Shikamaru's eyes opened. Ino quickly pulled her hand back as he looked up into her eyes. "Were you just touching my hair?" asked Shikamaru.

"Ummm...no," Ino replied, blushing a little bit.

"Are you sure? I thought I felt someone's fingers going through my hair."

"No really, I didn't do anything."

Shikamaru continued looking at hear, slightly dazed. "Mmm...I must have imagined it," muttered Shikamaru. He then instantly went back to sleep. Ino looked down at her right hand. "_Why was I just stroking his hair_?" she asked herself.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Sorry folks," apologized a cast member. "Big Thunder Mountain is currently closed for the time being. We ask that you please come back at a later time when the ride opens back up."

Two cast members stood in front of the roped-off entrance to Big Thunder Mountain. The ride had broken down and the people on-board the roller coaster had to be evacuated.

Sasuke and Sakura were amongst those who got stuck on the second lift hill. They navigated through a maze of staircases and hallways before they finally found the way out. "Well that sucked," complained Sakura. "We weren't even on the ride for more than a minute."

"Hey...it happens," Sasuke said. "At least we got free FASTPASSes for later."

"Still I really wanted to go on this ride."

"Let's go on another ride and just forget about this."

"Okay then."

Sakura then looked around for more rides to go on. Across the way, she could see the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. "We haven't been on Pirates of the Caribbean yet."

"Well then, let's go," Sasuke said.

Sasuke and Sakura headed over to the entrance of Pirates of the Caribbean. The attraction is a classic amongst Disney fans. It was a tame water ride that took guests back to the times of piracy. It was updated in 2006 to include characters and themes from the movie franchise.

After a brief five-minute wait, the two had reached the loading area of Pirates of the Caribbean. They waited for their boat to pull up to the dock. Once it did, they quickly got on and sat down in the back row. The safety spiel then warned guests of the rules.

_"Ahoy maties! For a safe voyage, be sure to stay seated with your hands, arms, legs, and feet inside the boat, and watch your children. And remember, no flash pictures. Now off with ya!"_

Without a moment of hesitation, the boat then lurched forward into the bayou scene. It was pretty mellow, with low banjo music and crickets chirping. "Well, this is peaceful," commented Sasuke.

"I knew you would like it," Sakura said.

The boat then passed by the Blue Bayou Restaurant. There, they saw Kiba and Choji eating away at a plate full of food. The two sighed as the boat continued to float slowly down the path.

"Oh man, this is such a great gimmick!" Choji said, happily.

"Well, can't complain when you are getting free food," added Kiba, as he bit into a Monte Cristo sandwich.

"Hopefully, we won't get busted," Choji said.

"Don't worry about it. We're not hurting anybody. What could happen?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After making a trip around Tom Sawyer Island, the Mark Twain Riverboat pulled up to the dock and everyone onboard was able to disembark. "Ah man, I feel so relaxed," sighed Shikamaru.

"You know, I'll admit," replied Ino. "It does feel nice to just take in the sights instead of running around all over the place."

"You got that right."

Shikamaru then turned to Ino. "Hey Ino," he said. "Thanks for doing that for me. I know you would rather do something else then just sit around."

"Oh no! It was nothing. To be honest, you look cute when you're relaxed."

"What?"

"Oh! Uh...what-what I meant was that it makes me happy when you're enjoying yourself. It shows a much calmer side of you."

"Really?"

Shikamaru thought to himself for a moment. "_She said I was cute. No one ever told me that...let alone her. It's...it's kind of nice to hear her say that._"

"So what do you to do now?" asked Ino.

"Oh...ummm...I don't know. Anything you want to do?"

"Well..."

Ino then thought to herself for a moment. She looked at Big Thunder Mountain and saw the cast members evacuating the riders off. Clearly, that ride wasn't an option. But then Ino had another idea. "I already seen a lot of the rides here," said Ino. "So the only thing we can do is re-ride them, but the lines are probably too long."

"Yeah, they probably are," Shikamaru said.

"So, how about you and I go to California Adventure and see some shows and maybe check out the other parades they have?"

"Sounds good to me."

The two then began to walk towards Disney's California Adventure. On the way, Ino slowly walked closer towards Shikamaru and grabbed onto his left hand. Shikamaru, surprised, looked down at their hands. "Uhh...Ino, you holding onto my hand," he said.

"I know," Ino said. "You don't have a problem with it, do you?"

"Uhhh...no, not at all," Shikamaru said, blushing.

"Because you held my hand last night," reminded Ino.

"I know. I was just caught off-guard. That's all."

As the two walked down Main Street, holding each other's hands, Shikamaru felt his face becoming warm and his heart beating faster.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Sit closer together and keep your ruddy hands in board,_" warned the talking skull.

Suddenly, everyone screamed as the boat went off the edge and down a large waterfall. The boat made a splash, causing a few riders up front to get wet, including Sasuke and Sakura. "Well, I wasn't expecting that," commented Sasuke.

The boat continued down the leisurely waterways, passing by a skeleton with a sword in its chest and a large room filled with gold and treasure.

"Wow, that's a lot of gold," Sasuke said.

"You think it's real?" Sakura asked.

"I doubt that. I don't think they would spend money to buy real gold coins."

The boat floated down towards a "waterfall" (really just a screen of fog). "_Dead men tell no tales!_" echoed a voice.

As the boat got close to the waterfall, Davy Jones's head appeared through the waterfall. "_Ahhhh! If ye be brave enough to face a pirate's curse...proceed_," warned Davy Jones. His head then disappeared from the waterfall.

The boat then passed by a battle between the Wicked Wench and a fortress. Captain Barbossa was on the Wicked Wench, commanding his crew to launch cannonballs at the fort. Water splashed upwards in the air as the cannonballs landed.

One of the cannons went off as the boat was in front of it. Everyone on-board felt a strong blast of air from the cannon. "Whoa!" exclaimed Sakura.

Sasuke quickly sat up and reached into his pockets. "Sasuke, it's okay!" Sakura said. "It was just an effect."

Sasuke slowly turned back to Sakura and he sat back down. "Yeah...of course I knew that," he said.

"You thought it was real?" Sakura asked.

"No, I knew it was fake," Sasuke said.

"Yeah...sure you did."

"I mean it."

The boat floated into the town of Isla Tesoro, where the pirates have taken over and were wreaking havoc. A group of pirates stood around a well as they dunked the mayor into the well. Off to the side of the mayor dunking was Captain Jack Sparrow, hiding behind some mannequins. "Look, it's Jack Sparrow!" Sakura shouted.

Sasuke leaned forward and saw Jack popping his head, overlooking the situation. "Meh," he muttered.

"Meh?" asked Sakura. "What do you mean meh?"

"I don't see what's so great about him," Sasuke said.

"It's because you're a guy."

"That's probably what it is."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

At Disney's California Adventure, the Pixar Play Parade was making its way down the park's performance corridor. The Pixar Play Parade was a new parade introduced in 2008 to replace the previous parade, the Block Party Bash. The parade floats features characters from Disney-Pixar movies, including "_a bug's life_", "_Toy Story_", and "_Monsters Inc._" The parade's acrobats and dancers performed alongside the parade floats.

Ino and Shikamaru were among the crowd watching the parade. The two sat on the rock walls surrounding the Golden Vine Winery. "So, what do you think?" Ino asked. "You like this parade?"

Shikamaru didn't reply. However, Ino turned and saw a small smile on his face. She looked down and saw him tapping his toe to the sound of the music. Ino smiled and began to clap her hands along with the music. Shikamaru turned to her. "Uhhh...what are you doing?" he asked.

"The same thing you're doing," replied Ino.

"What are you talking about?" asked Shikamaru.

"Oh don't play dumb with me. I saw you tapping your foot."

"Huh?"

"I know you just want to clap your hands. It's okay."

"No, I'm fine."

Ino then grabbed Shikamaru's hands and forced him to clap his hands. "Look it's not that hard," she taunted.

"Hey stop it! Let go of me!" pleaded Shikamaru.

Ino eventually released her grip off Shikamaru. "Look, you can clap your hands. I'll just tap my foot, okay?" Shikamaru asked.

"Oh alright, you big baby!" teased Ino. The two then continued to watch all of the parade floats pass by in front of them.

After Lightning McQueen and Mater (from Disney-Pixar's "_Cars_") "drove" behind the Toy Story float, everyone clapped and cheered. The music faded and everyone began walking towards different directions. "Oh man, that was fun!" Ino cheered.

"Yeah..." breathed Shikamaru. "So, you want to go on a ride or something?"

"Really? Now you want to go on a ride? Because I was thinking of..."

Ino didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she turned her head towards Paradise Pier. Shikamaru looked up and saw one of the blue "scream tunnels" from California Screamin', which was barely visible from where they were standing. "You want to go on the roller coaster?" Shikamaru asked. "Ah alright."

"Seriously? I thought you hated roller coasters."

"Well...I guess one roller coaster ride wouldn't kill me," explained Shikamaru. "Let's go."

Shikamaru and Ino then began to walk over towards California Screamin'. Shikamaru glanced at Ino's right hand. Once again, he walked closer to her and grabbed onto her hand. Ino looked back at Shikamaru. "You really like to hold hands, don't you?" Ino asked. "First Tower of Terror, then the Electrical Parade, and then a little while ago."

"Well...your hand is very soft," complimented Shikamaru.

Ino's smiled as her face slightly turned red. "T-thank you," she stammered quietly. Shikamaru smirked as he thought back to his challenge with Neji. But just like last night, he turned away and frowned. "_Wait...this isn't right,"_ he thought to himself. He turned to Ino, who was walking straight forward, not noticing him. She smiled as the two got closer to Paradise Pier. "_I wonder if Ino is really in love with me at this point,_" pondered Shikamaru. "_That would suck if she was in love with me. Wait...why would that be bad? I mean, yeah, she'll cry and she'll certainly kill me, but she should know I never wanted to have a relationship with her._"

Shikamaru then grew even more miserable as he brought his palm up to his forehead. Ino noticed this and stopped in her tracks. "Is something wrong?" she asked, worriedly.

"What? No, I'm fine," Shikamaru answered. "Just...getting a headache. It's probably the heat."

"If you want to go back to the hotel room, we'll go back..."

"No, it's okay. Let's go on the roller coaster. But thanks for worrying about me though."

The two continued on their way. "_It really was nice of her to worry about me,_" Shikamaru continued thinking. "_God...I'm such an ungrateful bastard. I mean, Ino and I have had a lot of fun on this trip and she has done a lot for me. She's put up with my attitude. She's letting me hold her hand. She rooted for me on Toy Story Mania._"

Shikamaru then reached an epiphany. "_Am I...am I really in love with Ino?_" he asked himself.

"Hurry Shikamaru!" Ino shouted. Ino then began going faster, dragging Shikamaru behind him.

While crossing the bridge into Paradise Pier, they saw the water fountains and mist screens from "World of Color" testing in the lagoon. "Hey, we didn't get to see that show yet, did we?" asked Shikamaru.

"No, we haven't," answered Ino. "But judging from all of the spotlights and loud music from last night, it has to be good."

"Let's go see it tonight," suggested Shikamaru.

"Sounds like a plan," Ino said.

The two then continued briskly walking up the bridge, heading towards California Screamin'. Ino quickly glanced towards Shikamaru, who still had his head turned towards the lake. Ino couldn't help but notice the small smile on his face as he watched the testing taking place. "_You know...Shikamaru is kind of cute when he smiles_," she thought.

She quickly snapped her head back facing forward. "_Did I just seriously think that right now?_" she asked herself. "_Did I just say that Shikamaru was cute?_"

She turned back towards him and saw him smiling. "_Well...he is sort of cute,_" she repeated in her mind. "_You know, Shikamaru isn't really such a lazy bum. He just has a different way of having fun. But...he can be sweet sometimes, like back on Tower of Terror and Toy Story Mania. And it is fun watching parades and shows with him._"

Ino then began going on a tangent. "_He's also really smart too. And he's loyal to his friends and those he cares about. I always think that he's nothing but a lazy slacker, but I never really focused on the good things about him. And I really like the good things about him."_

"Hey Ino," Shikamaru said.

"_Maybe Sakura is right. Maybe I do kind of like him?_"

"Ino!" shouted Shikamaru.

"Huh?" Ino asked, coming back down to Earth.

"The line's 20 minutes," Shikamaru said. "That's pretty short, right?"

"Umm...yeah. Let's do it!"

Shikamaru and Ino then walked underneath the entrance sign and joined up with the other people in line for the coaster.

**(A/N:** I know that I have already written about most of the following rides, but I really want to develop the Shikamaru x Ino and Neji x Tenten plot.)

**20 MINUTES LATER...**

Shikamaru's fingers clamped tightly around the steel handles on his shoulder restraint as the roller coaster train went through the final helix of the coaster. Ino, on the other hand, had her hands up high in the air, screaming her lungs out. A small dip provided a little bit of airtime before the coaster came to a stop. The sudden stop propelled Ino and Shikamaru forward into the restraints. Ino laughed as she blew the hair out of her face. "Oh man, that ride was awesome!" she laughed. "Did you like it, Shikamaru?"

"Oh man," panted Shikamaru. "That ride was a lot more forceful than I thought."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Watch out for that one!" Neji shouted. He turned and shot one of the targets on one of the aliens on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. He and Tenten were competing for the highest score. So far, both scores were evenly matched. As their "Star Cruiser" slowly moved down the path, past the aliens and robots, Neji and Tenten continued to fire their lasers at the "Z" targets.

Once they entered hyperspeed tunnel, Neji grabbed onto the center joystick and spun the "cruiser" around. It was dark with only strobe light effects going off. "Oh no, we've been caught in some sort of tractor beam!" joked Neji.

"Neji, what are you doing?" asked Tenten. "Neji...I'm...haha...I'm getting dizzy." Tenten continued laughing as she tried to wrestle Neji's hand off the joystick.

After zapping away at the Evil Emperor Zurg, Buzz Lightyear appeared on a television hanging from the wall. "_Mission accomplished, space rangers! It's been an honor serving with you!_" congratulated Buzz Lightyear.

Neji and Tenten looked down at their scores. Neji's score read 145,600 and Tenten's read 155,300. "Hurray, I won!" Tenten shouted.

"Just barely," added Neji.

"Oh don't be a sore loser!"

"I'm not being a sore loser. Well done, Tenten. Now onto the next ride."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Over at Disney's California Adventure, Ino and Shikamaru were involved in a shooting contest of their own on Toy Story Mania. This time, however, Shikamaru was actually trying hard to win the game (the game was throwing rings around the Little Green Men). The two pulled on their pull-strings feverishly, trying to hit the targets. "I'm going to beat you!" boasted Ino.

"I doubt that!" replied Shikamaru.

"_Five...four...three...two...one...rings down people!_" commanded Buzz Lightyear.

The targets disappeared, but the trolleys remained where they were. "_Hold on a moment, folks! We'll get moving again soon!_" Mr. Potato Head said.

The targets reappeared, but this time they were only worth "0" points. Shikamaru and Ino took this time to relax their forearms. "Oh man, this ride really wears you out," panted Ino. She turned towards Shikamaru and lifted up her 3D glasses. "You know Shikamaru, I'm actually surprised that you're trying hard to win this game."

"Well, I can't lose to you now, can I?" asked Shikamaru. "I can't let you have bragging rights."

"Well, it's a shame that I'm going to beat you anyway."

"Not if I have anything to say."

The trolleys then moved on to the next game. The trolleys spun round and round until it stopped in front of the final game, Woody's Rootin' Tootin' Shootin' gallery, where the guests had to shoot suction cups at the targets.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Neji and Tenten's Autopia car clanked as it went down the guardrail. Neji took a deep breath as he held onto the steering wheel. "Ah...nothing like a nice drive through the park to ease your mind," remarked Neji.

"Hehe...yeah," breathed Tenten. "The scenery is beautiful."

Their thoughts were interrupted when they were bumped into from behind. "Hey, what's your problem buddy?" Neji shouted, angrily.

"Go faster!" shouted the driver behind him.

"Why bother? It doesn't make much of a difference!" Neji shouted back. "Just relax and enjoy the scenery!"

Neji and Tenten continued driving slowly down the road. Soon after being bumped the first time, the driver from behind bumped them again, causing Neji to grumble angrily. "Neji, just relax. Forget about him and have fun," advised Tenten.

At that moment, the driver bumped into Neji again. "Alright, that's it!" Neji shouted.

"Neji, wait! Just calm down!" pleaded Tenten.

"Let's go slowpoke!" the driver shouted.

Suddenly, the car behind Neji started to sputter. The engine backfired until the car came to a slow stop. The driver looked around, confused as to what's wrong. Neji and Tenten could only laugh. "Who's the slowpoke now?" taunted Tenten.

"You might want to pick up the pace," advised Neji. "You're blocking traffic!"

The two continued driving down the track while the stalled car backed up traffic.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Amongst the other attractions on Paradise Pier, Mickey's Fun Wheel stood out the most, being a giant Ferris wheel that was taller than any other attraction in the park. What made Mickey's Fun Wheel different from other Ferris wheels was that many of the gondolas ride on rails so that they swing back and forth as the Ferris wheel rotated.

Shikamaru and Ino were onboard one of the swinging gondolas. Every time the Fun Wheel would move, it would suddenly stop to load another group of people onboard. The two hanged onto the rails inside to keep themselves from sliding out of their seat. "Whoa, hang on!" Ino shouted, as the gondola rocked.

Soon, the rocking ceased and the two relaxed their grip. "Damn it," cursed Shikamaru. "I told you we should have gone on the non-moving ones."

"Oh come on, the moving ones are fun!" Ino replied, happily. Ino then swung her legs and shifted her weight so that the gondolas would move more. "Hey, knock it off!" shouted Shikamaru. "I'm getting sick here!"

"Oh...fine then!"

Ino then stopped and the gondola became stationary again. Ino then grabbed onto her plushy green teddy. "Hey, thanks for winning me this little bear for me," thanked Ino.

"It was no problem," Shikamaru said. "Just...just take care of it. That's all."

"Oh of course! I wouldn't let a prize like this go to waste."

The Fun Wheel continued to rise and stop as it loaded people onto the gondolas. Once they reached the very top, they could see all of Disney's California Adventure and even Disneyland. At the moment, the sun was beginning to set, making the sky turn a bright orange. "Wow...what a beautiful sight," commented Ino.

"Yeah, it's a nice view," Shikamaru added.

"Look at the people down below."

Shikamaru looked down and saw quite a few people sitting down and surrounding Paradise Park across from the boardwalk games. "Looks like the people are getting ready for World of Color," Shikamaru said.

"Oh man, it's getting busy. After we get off this Fun Wheel, we'll hurry over there and get a spot before it gets crowded."

The two remained silent for the moment. They continued to look around at the crowded Paradise Park and the other rides down below. Ino hugged her stuffed bear as she stared at Shikamaru, blushing bright red. "_Should I...should I tell him?_" she asked herself.

Shikamaru turned and saw Ino worrying. "Hey," he said. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh...ummm...no," answered Ino. "I was...just thinking about today. Today was probably one of the best days I ever had with you."

"Really?" Shikamaru asked, suddenly interested.

"Yeah. You know, I didn't think a guy like you would have fun."

"Hey!"

"But I was wrong! You are actually a fun person to be with. I have had so much fun with you on the rides today, especially the submarine ride."

"Yeah, that ride was pretty good."

"You know Shikamaru, a lot of people say that you and I act like a couple."

"Really? Who says that?"

"Sakura, mostly."

"Of course she would say that. Then again, Choji said that as well."

"Choji, too?"

"I know," Shikamaru said. Shikamaru then took a deep breath before continuing. "But...well...at first, I would deny it, but...these past few days...made me change my mind a bit..."

Before Shikamaru could continue any further, the Fun Wheel began moving again. Shikamaru and Ino, being caught off-guard, didn't grab onto the railings fast. The swing of the gondola caused Shikamaru to fly forward...into Ino's chest, her breasts acted as an air bag for his face. Ino yelled as Shikamaru quickly backed away. "What are you trying to do, you pervert?" Ino asked. "I know you did that on purpose!"

"I did not!" protested Shikamaru.

"Yeah, sure," Ino said, skeptic about what just happened.

"I mean it!"

"I think you were purposely trying to cop a feel now."

"No seriously! It was an accident!"

"Oh, looks like Shikamaru is a pervert after all!" teased Ino.

"Will you shut up and listen to me!"

"Hey, don't yell at me, you slacker!"

The two continued arguing as the Fun Wheel continued on its run, shaking up the gondolas even more.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Well, that ride wasn't really that good now, was it?" Shikamaru asked, as he and Ino passed by Mulholland Madness.

"Oh don't lie! You loved that ride!" Ino said. "Especially since you got to feel up my goody-goodies with your face."

"I told you, that was an accident!" shouted Shikamaru.

"Uh-huh," Ino replied.

"Alright, fine! I'm sorry for what happened back on the Fun Wheel, okay?" apologized Shikamaru. "Let's just forget about that and find a spot for World of Color."

"Fine then," Ino said.

It was six minutes to eight, and the two could see people lining up to step inside Paradise Park. "Oh man, what a crowd," Shikamaru said.

"Hopefully, we can find good seats for the show," Ino said.

The two walked up alongside Paradise Park, which was roped off and guarded by cast members. Shikamaru tried to walk underneath the white twine rope, but a cast member quickly rushed over and stopped him. "Whoa, there! What are you doing?" the cast member asked, sternly.

"We're trying to see the show," explained Ino.

"Do you two have a FASTPASS?" the cast member asked.

"A FASTPASS? To see the show?" asked Shikamaru.

"That's right, to step foot into Paradise Park to see World of Color, you have to have a FASTPASS ticket. If you don't have one, you'll have to watch the show from the other side or from the Golden Zephyr."

"Are you serious?" Shikamaru asked, angrily.

"Sorry, but those are the rules."

Ino and Shikamaru looked up at the Golden Zephyr and then across the way towards Toy Story Midway Mania. Both viewing areas were packed with people trying to see the show. It would be impossible to try and find a spot. "Look sir, both those places are busy," said Shikamaru. "Can't you cut us a break and let us in for tonight?"

"I'm sorry," the cast member replied. "But you have to have a FASTPASS ticket to get inside this area."

"But-"

"Forget it Shikamaru," interrupted Ino. "Let's just go. We'll try to see it from our hotel room."

The two of them walked past the cast member and reluctantly walked away from Paradise Park and past the thousands of people in line, FASTPASSes in hand. "Well that just sucks," complained Shikamaru. "I really wanted to see that show!"

"I know. Me too," replied Ino.

The two then spotted the FASTPASS machines for Grizzly River Run, which was temporarily used for giving out World of Color FASTPASSes. Shikamaru and Ino saw this and ran up to it, but there was a sign outside of the FASTPASS machines. "We're sorry. All FASTPASSes for World of Color have already been given out," read Shikamaru.

"Well, that's just great," complained Ino. "I'm really hoping that we can see the show from our hotel room."

"Let's try and see."

The two turned away from the FASTPASS machines and began walking to the special entrance that connects the Grand Californian to Disney's California Adventure. On the way, Ino suddenly remember something from the Fun Wheel. "Hey Shikamaru," she spoke.

"Yeah?" asked Shikamaru.

"Back at the Fun Wheel...before you...the gondola shook, you were trying to say something about denying people when they asked about us or something?"

"Oh...oh that!" Shikamaru suddenly remembered. "Uhh...well, I was just saying that...people always tell me that you and I would make a great couple. I would deny it at first, because...well...I always thought you were too bossy to be a good wife."

Ino then placed her hands on her hips. She glared at Shikamaru. "But-but...these past few days...all this time I've spent with you...makes me think...that you're not as troublesome as I thought you were."

"Wow...that was a nice thing to say," replied Ino.

Shikamaru turned his face away from Ino. The darkness masked his face. Ino titled her head to try and see Shikamaru's face. "Shikamaru, what's wrong?" Ino asked. She reached out and grabbed his chin. She lifted his face to reveal that he was blushing bright red. "Shikamaru, are you blushing?" Ino asked. "What it is?"

Ino was caught off-guard when Shikamaru suddenly put his hand behind her, brought her head forward, and kissed her on the lips. Ino kept her eyes wide-open. Her heart skipped a beat and shivers circulated through her entire body.

Shikamaru broke the kiss only seconds after it happened. Ino raised her hands up to her lips. "Shikamaru, why...why did you just...?" she asked.

"Sorry, I-I didn't know how else to say it," answered Shikamaru.

Ino put her hands down and smiled at Shikamaru. She wrapped her arms around Shikamaru and looked at him in his eyes. "You could have just said I love you," she said. The two shut their eyes and shared another kiss under the swirling sky of black and orange.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_We are now arriving into the Downtown Disney Station, gateway to the Downtown Disney District and the Disneyland Resort Hotels!_"

After riding the monorail, Neji and Tenten got off and began walking back to the Grand Californian Hotel. "Oh man, today was a lot of fun," commented Tenten.

"Yes...well, the day is not over yet," reminded Neji. "Don't forget there are some nighttime shows that I wanted you and I to see."

"Like what?"

"Well, there are the fireworks over the castle, and there is this show called "Fantasmic!" that looks like a lot of fun."

Tenten just smiled at him. But then, her mood turned sour. Neji noticed this right away. "What's wrong?" Neji asked.

"Nothing," replied Tenten.

"No, tell me what's wrong."

Tenten turned back to Neji, looking worried. "When we go back to Konoha, are you going to go back to your usual self?" Tenten asked.

"What do you mean?" Neji asked.

"You know, you're never going to smile. You're always going to be really serious and..."

"Oh that! Well...I'm not so sure myself."  
"You told me that you act that way because of the Hyuga clan. I just don't understand it. How is it that Hinata was able to smile, while you..."  
"Lady Hinata is part of the main house. She doesn't have as many restrictions as me. Because I'm in the branch house, there are certain freedoms that I'm not allowed to have...especially when it comes to...relationships."

"Huh?" Tenten asked. "What about relationships? You don't have arranged marriages, do you?"

"No...well...not quite," replied Neji. "Let's just say if I were to marry anyone, they would have to adopt a few responsibilities. I do not wish to have that happen to someone I care about deeply."

Tenten turned away from Neji, angry and disappointed. "Neji, this isn't right," she murmured.

"Well, that's what happens when you are born to the branch house of the Hyuga clan," answered Neji.

"No! You shouldn't be denied happiness! You deserve to have someone to love and care for!"

"Well...there really isn't much I can do. Look, we only have a few hours left, so let's just forget all about the Hyuga clan. Again, they only ruin the fun."

Tenten was still upset, but she decided to follow Neji's advice. "Still not right," she whispered.

"I know, but I've lived with it for many years now," replied Neji.

As they got closer to the hotel entrance, Tenten walked closer towards him and wrapped herself around his arm. Neji's eyes opened wide in surprise when Tenten grabbed his arm. His face turned a little red and his heart beat slightly faster. But he only smiled and grabbed onto Tenten's hand. "Your hand is very soft," he said.

"Thank you," Tenten replied.

The two released each other once they were in the hotel lobby. "I'm going upstairs to rest for a bit," Tenten told Neji. "Are you coming with me?"

"Uh no," replied Neji. "Actually I got to look for Naruto. I have to tell him something."

"Oh, okay then!" Tenten said. "I'll see you later tonight!"

The two began to walk away into two different directions. As he walked around the hotel property, he sighed out of relief and smiled. "_It feels so good to talk to her about the Hyuga clan problems,_" he thought. "_Although, when we do get back home...The Hyuga clan will create problems._"

He spent the next few minutes searching through the hotel, looking for the spiky, blonde-haired knucklehead. He searched through the entire hotel, but he had no luck finding him. "_Where the hell is he?_" he asked himself. "_He must be in Downtown Disney._"

He then began heading towards Downtown Disney. He went round a corner and saw Hinata and Ino sitting down in the sofas near the elevator hallway. "_Hinata! She and Naruto are inseparable! She HAS to know where Naruto is,_" Neji said. "_And Ino is there as well! Perhaps this is a perfect time to check up on Shikamaru's progress with her._"

Neji casually walked up to the two, walking behind Ino. Ino was unaware of his presence, so she continued talking to Hinata. "Oh Hinata, it felt so wonderful," Ino rambled on. "Just him and me underneath the night sky...sharing a romantic kiss."

"You two already kissed?" Hinata asked, surprised. Neji was surprised as well. Even he hadn't gotten that far with Tenten. "As hard as it is to believe," answered Ino. "And he's such a good kisser too!"

Hinata then looked up and noticed Neji standing behind Ino. "Oh Neji!" acknowledged Hinata, in a surprised tone of voice.

"Sorry for interrupting," addressed Neji, "but I wanted to know if you knew where Naruto is."

"He said that he was going to be in one of the stores in Downtown Disney," Hinata said. "He never said which one, though."

"That's what I thought. Thank you."

"Anyway, I'll see you later Hinata."

"Okay, bye!"

Hinata then got up and began heading back to her room. Ino stood up on her feet, but Neji quickly spoke up. "Excuse me Ino," began Neji. "I couldn't help but overhear your little conversation. You know, about you and Shikamaru sharing a kiss."

"Oh! You heard that?" Ino asked, slightly embarrassed. It was one thing to tell this to Hinata, but Neji was a different story. "I am only curious simply because one the bus ride over to the hotel, Shikamaru told me that he cannot imagine the two of you enjoying a happy life together."

"Yeah, he told me that too," Ino said. "But just a few moments ago, he told me that these past two days have made him think that I wasn't as troublesome as he thought I was. And you know what...these past few days have also shown me who he really is."

"So...you're now in love with him?"

"Well...yeah."

Ino stroked her ponytail as she blushed. Suddenly, something strange began boiling up inside Neji. Ino noticed this and saw Neji's narrowing his eyes. "Neji, are...are you okay?" Ino asked, worriedly.

Neji didn't answer her. He narrowed his eyes and his face turned red and hot. He began breathing through his nose heavily. "_Shikamaru, you bastard! You have an attractive and wonderful woman in the palm of your hands, feeling affection for you. She loves you! She has no idea that you are only faking your emotions for her! Shikamaru, you have the freedom to choose whoever you wish to spend your life with freely and with little to no consequences! But you think this is a game now!_"

"Neji, what's going on?" Ino asked.

"Shikamaru isn't the guy you think he is!" Neji blurted out.

Everything and everyone went quiet after Neji's loud exclamation. Ino felt upset. "What are you talking about?" Ino asked.

"Ino, I think maybe I should tell you about what Shikamaru's real motives," replied Neji, calmly.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**A/N: **So, that's it for chapter 8! Holy hell, this took forever. I really wanted to fill in the plotholes that the original version caused while keeping everyone in character (for the most part). I also wanted to make Shikamaru less of a jerk as well. So I hope this did the trick.

**Next time:** Neji reveals everything about Shikamaru and he's little challenge to Ino (while leaving out his name as well). Of course, Ino doesn't believe him and only thinks that he is jealous of him. So Neji comes up with a plan to get Shikamaru to tell her the truth. Of course, once he succeeds, things get very intense.


	9. Heartbroken and Heartfelt

"Ninja Love"

By MisterAnimeFan

**NOTE:** This chapter is a little bit longer than the previous chapters.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"What are you talking about?" Ino asked.

"Ino, I think maybe I should tell you about what Shikamaru's real motives," replied Neji, calmly.

"What real motives?" asked Ino.

"It's a long story." Neji took a deep breath and began to explain to Ino the whole situation between him and Shikamaru (well, **almost** the whole situation). "On the bus ride over here, you may remember that Shikamaru got up from his seat and sat in the back with me," began Neji. "Well, while in the back, Shikamaru began talking about how easy it easy to manipulate women. I asked him about you, and he told me that it should be easy to make you fall in love with him. He said, by himself, that if he managed to win your heart, he gets bragging rights."

Neji finished his story and Ino continued looking at him, shocked at his words. "I'm sorry, but that is the truth about Shikamaru," Neji said. Ino continued looking at her feet, confused and upset. She said nothing for the next few minutes.

"I understand that your heart is shattered and you feel angry or sad at Shikamaru," murmured Neji, sympathetically.

"You're lying," accused Ino.

"What was that?" asked Neji.

"You're lying!" Ino repeated, this time a little more louder. "You're making all that up!"  
"I assure you that what I just said is true."

"No it isn't! I don't believe for one second that Shikamaru is some arrogant, cocky, greedy, selfish punk who is only in love with me for some challenge that you and he agreed on!"

"Whoa, wait a minute! I didn't agree to that!" protested Neji. "I just said he was an idiot and that's it!"

"Regardless of that, I have known Shikamaru for years. He has never acted like that!"

"Trust me."

"No. I want proof that Shikamaru made up that challenge and he really doesn't love me!"

Ino continued to watch Neji as he began thinking to himself. "You want proof, huh?" Neji pondered.

"You don't have any, do you?" Ino asked, assertively. "I didn't think so."

"No wait! I can prove it to you. But first, do you know where Shikamaru is?" asked Neji.

"He's up in the room, taking a shower."

"Good, follow me."

Neji turned around and headed towards the elevators. He turned around and noticed that Ino remained where she was. "Well?" asked Neji. "Are you coming or not? Or are you afraid of the truth?"

Ino nodded her head and joined Neji inside the elevator, up to Shikamaru's room. Ino continued to stare at the floor. "_Shikamaru, would never act like that,_" she told herself. "_I know Shikamaru. Neji has to be lying!_"

Soon, they reached their floor. "Which way is your hotel room?" asked Neji.

"This way," answered Ino, pointing down one of the hallways.

Ino then led Neji to Shikamaru's hotel room. She grew more worried as they approached Shikamaru's door. The two stood in front of the room door. "This is it," Ino said.

"Okay, here's the plan," began Neji. "I'm going to go in there and you just stay out here and listen to our conversation."

"There's no way you'll get anything out of Shikamaru. He loves me!"

"Oh, does he?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Inside of Shikamaru's hotel room, Shikamaru stood in front of a bathroom mirror, drying off his hair with a towel. He remained shirtless as the steam from the shower billowed out into the rest of the room. He reflected back to today and his kiss with Ino. "_It's funny to think that all my life, I'd always say that I would never fall in love with a woman as bossy or as troublesome as Ino, and yet here I am in love with Ino. But...that's not really a bad thing_," he thought.

He then remembered his father's words about women:

"_No matter how strong-minded a woman is, she will show kindness to the man she loves._"

Shikamaru told back to when Ino let him sleep on her lap. "_You know, I think my dad was right about that._"

Shikamaru placed both of his hands on the bathroom counter and looked down into the sink. He thought about Neji. "_But Neji...that bastard. He's probably still lying to Tenten's face, not even giving a damn about her. I can just imagine him now, boasting. He'll come into my room and say something like: "Oh it was so easy to make Tenten fall in love with me! That is the charm of being in the Hyuga clan. You have women lining up around the block." Bastard...and he'll probably rip me for actually caring about a woman. The last thing I want is to hear him call me soft and a pansy. I wonder if I should tell Tenten about what he has planned. If I did that, then I technically get bragging rights and he can't say nothing about it._"

He then heard a knock at the door.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"_Who is it?_" Shikamaru shouted from inside.

"It's Neji, I want to talk to you!" shouted Neji.

Both Ino and Neji heard the faint sounds of footsteps approaching the door. The doorknob turned and the door cracked open. Only a part of Shikamaru's face was visible to Neji. Ino hid away from the door, so Shikamaru didn't see her. "Come on in," welcomed Shikamaru. Neji stepped inside and shut the door behind him. Ino quietly walked up to the door and placed her ear against the door, listening in on the conversation inside.

Inside of the room, steam billowed from the bathroom, showing evidence of a recent hot shower. Shikamaru walked around shirtless as he toweled off his hair. "So what brings you here?" Shikamaru asked.

"Oh, nothing really," answered Neji. "I was just walking downstairs and I heard from Hinata and Ino that you and Ino had shared a kiss."

"Oh! You heard about that?" asked Shikamaru, as he put on a shirt.

"Yes, I did. I must say, I didn't think you have gotten that far with her," Neji said.

"Well, how far are you with Tenten?" asked Shikamaru. "Did you kiss her yet?"

"No...I'm more of a slow-and-steady guy. You can't rush things with women."

"Yes you can. I did that with Ino."

Ino continued to stand outside with her ear against the door. The conversation was faint. She could only hear if someone was close to the door. For the time being, she could only hear Shikamaru and not Neji. "Well, it seems like I'll be the one winning the challenge," boasted Shikamaru. Ino just gulped as she listened on. "So there is a challenge," she whispered, quietly.

"So, you think you'll win this challenge?" Neji asked.

"Are you kidding? I already kissed her. That should seal the deal for me," continued Shikamaru. "You can't go any farther than that...well, except for sex."

Ino placed her fingers on her lips. "That kiss meant nothing to him?" she asked, angrily. "I don't believe this! How could I fall for that?"

"That's a shame Shikamaru," smirked Neji. "Ino is quite a catch."

"Yeah, but she's still so troublesome and annoying," continued Shikamaru

Ino covered her mouth, shocked to hear Shikamaru's words. She felt sick to her stomach. She leaned back against the wall. Tears began to form in the corner of her eyes.

Inside the room, Shikamaru began to walk away from the door, closer to the hotel balcony (**A/N:** Now Ino can't hear what he is saying). "Shikamaru, I must admit these words are quite shocking to hear," Neji said.

"What? Do **you** have feelings for Tenten?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yes," Neji replied, calmly.

"I knew you didn't."

Shikamaru began walking away from Neji, but he suddenly turned back to Neji, his eyes widened. "Wait? You do?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yes, you cocky bastard," Neji scoffed scornfully. "I am in love with Tenten."

"Oh..." was all Shikamaru could say. "I thought you were going to..."

"No. I'm done with the challenge," replied Neji. "Let me tell you this Shikamaru, I know I didn't think much of Tenten when we made the challenge, but these past few hours made me realize how much Tenten meant to me. I never really cared much for loving a woman. I just didn't see the appeal of love or marriage. But now that I am here, away from the Hyuga clan and everyone else back in Konoha, Tenten has shown me why it is so special. I was hoping that Ino would teach you that as well, but I guess you learned nothing."

"Whoa, wait a minute!" protested Shikamaru. "About what I said about Ino..."

Neji refused to listen. He stomped his way out of Shikamaru's room, with Shikamaru following close behind. "Neji, just listen to me, damn it!" shouted Shikamaru. Neji opened the door and turned to Ino, who was curled up in a ball, no doubt crying her eyes out. "I am sorry that you had to hear that Ino," muttered Neji.

Neji began to walk down the hallway. Shikamaru was about to follow after him, but he noticed Ino sitting against the wall. Shikamaru's eyes widened as he saw his girlfriend curled up with her knees up in front of her chest. "_Oh crap! Please tell me Ino didn't hear me!_" he thought, worriedly.

Shikamaru kneeled down towards Ino. "Ino, what's wrong?" Shikamaru asked. "Ino, talk to me! What's the matter?"

"You're what's wrong!" Ino shouted, furiously.

She broke out of her little ball, clenched her fist tightly, and punched Shikamaru in the face. Shikamaru stumbled backwards and crashed into the wall behind him. He grabbed his sore cheek. He felt his jaw throbbing in pain. Ino stood up on her feet and loomed over he fallen boyfriend. Shikamaru looked up and saw her swollen eyes, slightly messy blonde hair, red face, and angry expression. "Ino, wait! Let me explain," pleaded Shikamaru, putting his hand out in front of him. If there was one thing that he learned from his mother is that women were merciless when they were pissed off.

"I don't want to hear it!" Ino shouted, angrily. "Why would you take advantage of me like that? You kissed me. It was a magical kiss! I loved you so much. And yet, you throw it back into my face, just so that you can parade me around like a glorified trophy with a big rack! Is that all I am worth to you?"

"No, you're worth more than that!"

"I don't believe you! After all that you said to Neji..."

"Neji set me up! Please, just listen to me!"

"And to think...that I actually loved you!"

Without another glance, Ino stomped away, still tearing up, looking down at the floor. "Ino, come back!" Shikamaru called out. But it was no use. He only watched as Ino slowly disappeared from his sight. She never looked back towards him, refusing to have a second thought. Shikamaru violently slammed the back of her head against the wall and his fists on the carpet. "I can't believe Neji set up like that!" Shikamaru shouted. "I didn't mean anything by that! I was only trying to keep my image in tact. Or...I don't know what I was doing!"

He placed both of his hands over his face. "God, this is such a huge drag," he sighed, disappointed.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Further down the hallway, Ino stopped in front of a hotel room door. She felt overwhelmed. Her mind was clouded, preventing her from thinking straight. She breathed through her nose feverishly, trying very hard to not cry. She knocked on the door, hoping that the person she is looking for is inside. A few second pass and Ino heard nothing. No footsteps, no voices, nothing.

She knocked on the door, desperately. "_Hold on! I'm coming!_" shouted someone from inside. The door opened and on the other side stood Sakura. "Ino, what are you doing here?" Sakura asked. Ino lifted her face up to her friend. Sakura grew worried as she saw her blonde-headed friend depressed and crying. "Oh my god, what happened to you?" she asked, worriedly.

Ino couldn't answer. Her breathing pattern grew more frantic. "My heart's been shattered," was all Ino could say coherently.

"Oh no!" gasped Sakura. "Come inside and tell me what happened."

Sakura then dragged Ino into her hotel room.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Shikamaru remained where he was, head against the wall, stressed out of his mind. He continuously rubbed the temples of his eyes, trying hard to come up with a way to solve the situation with Ino. "I love Ino, I really do," muttered Shikamaru. "I just had to put up an act in front of Neji at the worse time possible. I have to find someway to get Ino to forgive me. If Choji or Asuma found out that I pissed off Ino, things will never be the same. If only a woman's emotions can be an absolute, concrete process."

Shikamaru moaned as he leaned back against the wall. He dragged his fingers through his hair, sighing heavily. He closed his eyes and listened to the sound of the elevator dings.

Just then, Tenten walked around the corner and saw Shikamaru, sitting on the floor like a homeless man who has lost everything. "Um Shikamaru?" Tenten asked, curiously.

"Huh?" noticed Shikamaru. He looked up and saw Tenten leaning forward and looking at him. "Oh, Tenten!"

"Why are you sitting on the floor?" Tenten asked.

"Oh, I just had a little...confrontation with Ino," explained Shikamaru as he got up on his feet.

"Why? What happened?"

"Uhhhh...I was talking about some stuff with Neji...and Ino heard some of that stuff and...she got offended by what I said."

Tenten placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at him. "What did you say?" asked Tenten.

"I don't want to repeat it," answered Shikamaru. "But you have to believe me! I didn't mean to make her angry!"

"Well, whatever you said, it won't be easy to get Ino's forgiveness."

"I know. Ino can easily hold a grudge on somebody. I don't know what to do."

"You just need to show Ino that she means a lot to you and that you would do anything for her."

Shikamaru rubbed his chin, thinking of something that would wow Ino and make her forgive him. You turned back to Tenten. "Got any ideas on how to do it?" he asked.

"Sorry, I don't," answered Tenten. "You'll just have to figure out a way yourself."

Shikamaru looked back down at his feet, downtrodden. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed angrily. "Hey, whatever you do, make sure to really put your true feelings into it, okay?" advised Tenten. "I hope everything works out for you, Shikamaru. Now excuse me, I have to go and find Neji. We're going to go see Fantasmic right now!"

Shikamaru watched as an excited Tenten walked down the hallway in search for Neji. Seeing her smiling face caused Shikamaru to narrow his eyes and glare at her, but his emotions weren't directed at her. It was to Neji. He was the one who made Shikamaru say all of those things. He caused Ino to hate Shikamaru. This whole thing was that bastard's fault! He ruined everything between him and Ino! He doesn't deserve someone like Tenten!

Those were his thoughts. But a few minutes afterwards, Shikamaru took a deep breath and reevaluated his thoughts. Perhaps Shikamaru will tell Tenten the truth about Neji and ruin him the same way Neji did to him. Or...maybe he'll do something different.

"Hey Tenten!" called Shikamaru.

"Huh?" Tenten asked, turning around. She was halfway down the hallway when Shikamaru called her. Shikamaru walked down to Tenten's position. "Hey, I noticed that you and Neji have gotten a bit closer since we left Konoha," remarked Shikamaru.

"Well, Neji has definitely opened up a lot to me," mentioned Tenten.

"Has he told you the truth?" questioned Shikamaru.

"The truth? About what?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back in Sakura's room, Ino placed her face onto Sakura's bed and cried. Sakura stood beside Ino, giving her tissues and comforting her by rubbing her shoulder. Sasuke had gone off somewhere, leaving the two alone. "I...I...I just...can't believe it Sakura," sniffed Ino. "He said he loved me. He even kissed me, and it was all just a ploy! I was only just a prize to him!"

"Whoa, you two actually kissed?" Sakura asked, surprised. "Well anyway...everything is going to be okay, Ino."

"Oh yeah? That's easy for you to say!" Ino cried, hysterically. "You never had Sasuke break your heart like Shikamaru did to me!"

"What are you talking about?" argued Sakura. "Remember when Sasuke left Konoha village? But look, this isn't about me and Sasuke! You need to show Shikamaru that he can't just treat you like that."

Ino wiped her tears away with tissue and cleared her nose. "Well, what should I do?" she asked.

"You have to get into Shikamaru's face and tell him that he had just lost the only person who would even consider loving him. I mean, let's face it. You were the only one who could put up with his laziness. He'll never find another girl like you who would do that."

Ino began to feel a little less sad and started to feel a little more determination. "You know what? You're right!" she chimed. She lifted herself off Sakura's bed and stood onto her feet. "Shikamaru is really missing out on a girl like me!" she boasted. She then pumped her fist into the air. "And I'm going to tell him just how much he's missing out!"

Ino turned towards Sakura. "Thanks Sakura!" thanked Ino.

"Anytime," smiled Sakura. "Now give Shikamaru some hell!"

Ino walked out of Sakura's room to look for Shikamaru.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Outside of the Grand Californian Hotel, the sun has set and the Disneyland Resort began to lit up with various colors. The crowds were especially big in Frontierland, Main Street, and Paradise Pier as people were gathering for the respective nighttime shows.

In Downtown Disney, street performers continued to thrive and play while the crowds gathered around. After having spent the entire afternoon browsing around the various stores, Naruto sat down on a bench and watched a bunch of performers using ordinary trash cans as drums. The sound echoed throughout the area, competing with the other performers in the area.

After the final notes, the crowd and Naruto clapped and cheered. The performers then went back to their janitorial duties and the crowd dispersed, heading to their next destination. "Ah man, that was pretty cool!" commented Naruto.

He got up from his spot and stretched his limbs out. "Alright, I think it's time to meet back up with Hinata," Naruto told himself. "I got a little surprise for her!"

"Naruto!" called a voice.

Naruto turned his head and saw Neji Hyuga running towards him. "Oh, hey Neji!" waved Naruto.

Neji stopped in front of Naruto to catch his breath. "I've been looking all over for you!" panted Neji. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" asked Naruto.

"I just wanted to thank you for the advice that you gave me before."

"Oh hey, don't worry about it! If it means that you're finally going to find someone you like, I was happy to help. Anyway, me and Hinata have something planned for tonight."

"I'll walk with you."

The two then began to walk back towards the hotel. On the way, they continued to talk. "So, everything is going smoothly for you and your girlfriend?" asked Naruto, curious.

"For the most part," Neji replied, nonchalantly. "I figure I would take it slow with her. You know, not rush it."

"Yeah...I understand. You would seem like the kind of guy who would take it slow. I'm just so happy you decided to loosen up and find yourself a girlfriend."

"I'll admit, this whole 'loosening-up' thing felt weird at first, but it's not so bad after a while."

"But there's one thing about you that confuses me though."

"Yeah, and what's that?"

"How come you wait until now to find yourself a girlfriend? I mean, whoever this chick is going to be disappointed once she realizes that you live far away in Konoha."

"Ummm...actually, she won't. She..."

Neji then turned away, trying to his best not to turn red, not even the slightest. "Actually, she lives in Konoha with me," confessed Neji.

"Wait...there's another ninja here?" asked Naruto.

"No there isn't, you idiot!" scolded Neji.

"Ohhh...oooooh! I get it now! It's Tenten, isn't it?"

Neji turned to him, a bit surprised. "How did you know it was Tenten?" he questioned, anxiously.

"Well, there's only four women that came with us from Konoha," deduced Naruto. "Hinata is your cousin and Sakura is already taken. I can't imagine any guy who can put up with Ino, and since you've known Tenten for many years, I assumed it was her that you liked. Am I right?"

Neji looked at him, surprised that Naruto was able to think of that fast. He faced forward, away from Naruto. "Alright, yeah, fine, it is Tenten," he admitted, quickly and somewhat angrily.

"Hey, don't get mad or anything," pleaded Naruto. "I'm actually glad you decided to put on her moves. She seems like your type, or at least that's how I see it."

"Did Shikamaru tell you that before we got here?" Neji asked, curiously.

"What are you talking about?" asked a confused Naruto.

"Ah...never mind," sighed Neji.

"Anyway, I think she's your type. I can imagine you and her living a happy marriage."

"Uhhh...yeah, I prefer it if we did not talk about marriage at this time," suggested Neji.

"Oh I see, too early in the relationship right?" Naruto asked.

"No," Neji replied, quickly. "Well, yes, it is too early to think about marriage, but...well there are _**some**_ things right now that prevent me from actually thinking about marrying Tenten."

"What's that?" asked Naruto.

Neji didn't answer, but he didn't have to. He let out a small nervous cough and muttered something to himself. Naruto looked up and saw Neji messing with his headband, the same headband where his curse seal hides. Naruto knew right away what Neji was referring to. "I get it now...it's the Hyuga clan side branch, right?" Naruto asked, solemnly. Neji nodded his head, confirming Naruto's answer. "Man...this side branch and main branch system is really starting to get to me," sighed Naruto. "I mean, I know it's supposed to protect the Hyuga family, but...I don't know."

Both Neji and Naruto walked side-by-side as they walked underneath one of the Grand Californian's arches. They didn't look at each other nor did they say anything. "Yeah," Neji said, breaking the silence at least. "It's tough when the Hyuga clan is involved. I mean, I do love Tenten, but when I think of it long term, I can't help but feel a bit discouraged."

"I know the feeling. I'm sort of in a similar situation," remarked Naruto.

"What do you mean?" Neji asked.

"Well...you know that me and Hinata have been dating for many years now," reminded Naruto. "Well, it goes without saying that there will be a time when I want to marry Hinata."

"Oh!" Neji exclaimed, as if he heard some really bad news.

"Yeah, I know," replied Naruto. "Hinata's father doesn't approve, right?"

"Well..."

Before Neji could finish his answer, Naruto took another deep breath. "It figures," he sighed. "It seems like I have very few friends in the Hyuga clan. I only have Hinata, her sister, and you."

"The Hyuga clan is rather strict when it comes to marriages, especially when you're trying to marry the heir to the Hyuga clan," explained Neji. "Needless to say, Lord Hiashi won't just give Hinata away to someone like you, no offense."

"What do you mean someone like me?" Naruto asked, a bit upset.

"Do not take it the wrong way, Naruto. It's only because you're not from any high-class ninja clan."

"Oh...it that how it is?"

"Again, it's nothing personal."

Naruto looked down at his feet, still feeling sad. "You know, you don't have to be from some clan to prove that you're worthy," murmured Naruto. "What do I have to do to prove that to them?"

Neji looked at Naruto and couldn't help but feel a little sorry for him. "You know Naruto, things aren't looking for you and Hinata right now, but I still believe that with time and determination, the Hyuga clan will warm up to the idea of you being married to Hinata," proclaimed Neji, proudly.

After hearing those words, Naruto smiled and cheered up a little bit. "Yeah, I hope you're right," he chuckled.

Once they reached the lobby, the two broke away from each other and walked towards different directions, heading to their hotel rooms. "I'll see you later Neji!" waved Naruto.

"Okay," replied Neji. "And Naruto, one more thing!"

"Yeah?" asked Naruto.

Neji leaned in closer so that Naruto could hear. "Just have fun with Hinata, okay?" advised Neji. "Forget about the Hyuga clan and cherish every moment with her."

Naruto was surprised to hear Neji's strong words, but he smiled. "Yeah, okay," agreed Naruto. "But don't forget to take your own advice with you and Tenten."

The two then walked away. Neji took the elevator up to his floor, and as soon as he walked out, he was suddenly greeted by Tenten. "Hey Neji!" she said, happily.

"Oh Tenten!" exclaimed Neji. "You surprised me!"

"I was waiting for you, and you took forever!" complained Tenten.

"Sorry, it took a while to find Naruto," explained Neji. "Anyway, just give me a few minutes to get some things from my room and then we'll go get our spot for Fantasmic."

"Okay!" beamed Tenten, excitedly.

Before Neji walked away, Tenten stopped him. "Wait, Neji! Before I forget..." she began.

"Yes?" asked Neji.

"I ran into Shikamaru just now," Tenten said.

Neji stopped dead in his tracks and his eyes widened. "_Oh crap,_" he thought. "_Shikamaru, tell me you didn't..._"

"Well, w-what did he say?" stammered Neji.

"I ran into Shikamaru in the hallway. He seemed upset. I asked him about it and said that he and Ino got into a fight or something like that," explained Tenten.

"Oh...yeah, I...I hear about that," spoke Neji.

"Yeah, it's really getting to him," added Tenten.

"Really?"

"Yeah, he really felt sorry about whatever he said about Ino. He wants to make it up to her."

"Seriously?"

Neji then felt a bit of remorse about what he did to Shikamaru. "_But wait...if he's sorry about what he said about Ino, then why did he say it to begin with?_" he thought.

"Anyway, after that, when I mentioned you, he told me that there was something about me that you didn't tell me about," continued Tenten.

Neji struggled to keep his composure. "_No! That jackass told her about the challenge!_" he worried.

"Ummm...what did he say exactly?" Neji asked, awaiting the crushing answer.

"Well...Shikamaru told me...that I meant a lot to you," finished Tenten.

"Okay look, if you'd just let me explain!" pleaded Neji.

He suddenly realized what Tenten had just said and looked at her as if she was lying. "Wait...Shikamaru said what?" Neji asked.

"Shikamaru told me that you said I was the most important person in the world to you," repeated Tenten. She then continued on, repeating the conversation between her and Shikamaru from earlier.

"_Yeah, Neji wanted to tell you that himself, but...you know how reserved he is," explained Shikamaru. "But Neji told me that you, Tenten, are the most important person in his life."_

"_He...he really said that?" asked Tenten, touched._

"_Yeah, that's what he said to me earlier," continued Shikamaru. "He told me how just being around you makes him feel comfortable about letting loose and being able to have fun. I don't know what you guys did today, but he must have really enjoyed himself, because he told me he'll never forget it."_

"Did Shikamaru actually tell you all that?" Neji asked, still in disbelief.

"Neji, I know that you're a guy who keeps everything to himself, but when it comes to stuff like that, you don't have to be shy about it," replied Tenten. "You can tell me anything."

Neji didn't say anything else. He was still surprised that Shikamaru would actually help him with Tenten instead of trying to ruin him like he did to Shikamaru. "Tenten, you know all the stuff that Shikamaru told you are my true feelings," Neji said, decided to go along with it. "You made this vacation worthwhile, and I'm glad that I came here. Coming here made me realize how much you really mean to me. I never knew what fun really meant until you showed me."

Tenten raised her hand up and covered her mouth, touched at what Neji was saying. Acting on impulse, she reached out and warped her arms around Neji, hugging him tightly. Neji was caught off-guard when Tenten suddenly hugged him, but he shut his eyes and hugged her back. "You know Neji, I'm glad you came too," whispered Tenten. "If you hadn't I would have never known how sensitive you really were inside."

Both Tenten and Neji smiled as they held each other in their arms. The two broke away from each other after a few seconds. "That felt wonderful," muttered Neji.

"What? You never hugged a girl before?" teased Tenten.

"Not one as pretty as you," replied Neji.

Tenten smiled as her face turned red. "Well, we should probably hurry and get a spot for Fantasmic," reminded Tenten. "It's probably packed right now."

"Oh yeah, that's right!" remember Neji. "I'm just going to go to the room really quick. Meet me downstairs and we'll get a spot for Fantasmic."

"Okay!"

Neji then walked back towards his room while Tenten took the elevator downstairs to the lobby. As Neji walked back to his hotel room, he began to think about what Shikamaru had done for him. "_I never thought Shikamaru would do something like that for me_," thought Neji. "_I ruined his relationship with him and Ino...and rather than do the same thing to me, he actually helped me. Why he would do that for me, I don't know. But it's a nice gesture, regardless._"

Neji then felt more remorse. "I have to repay Shikamaru somehow...and hopefully get some answers as to why he acted like he did before and why he did for me," Neji muttered to himself.

On the way to his room, he ran into Choji and Kiba. The two had spend the entire day going to the various food eateries in the resort, using their health inspector disguises to get free food. They two still had their disguises on. "Well, if it isn't the two food thieves," scolded Neji.

"Hey, do you see how much money they charge for a churro?" argued Kiba.

"Yeah, we got a sweet deal!" boasted Choji.

Neji rolled his eyes at the two. But then he noticed a green bag in Choji's hands. "What's in the bag?" he asked.

"World of Color picnic meals," answered Kiba.

"Picnic meals?" asked Neji.

"Oh man, these things are great!" praised Choji. "Not only do they have good food, they also give you a reserved spot for World of Color."

"Yeah, they come with FASTPASSes for the show!" added Kiba. He reached into his pockets and took out two white slips of paper. Similar to a FASTPASS for a ride, the slip listed the time to return to claim your spot for the show.

Neji eyed the two FASTPASSes that Kiba held in his hands along with the picnic meals in Choji's. "World of Color? That's the water show in California Adventure, right?" asked Neji.

"Yep!" Choji replied, happily.

"So if I buy one of these little picnic boxes, I get a FASTPASS for the show?" asked Neji.

"Yep!" answered Choji. "But they ran out. Luckily, we got the last ones!"

"Hey, we better hurry. The show's starting in a few minutes!" worried Kiba. "See ya later, Neji!"

The two then began to walk away and head towards California Adventure. Neji eyed the two leaving, but more importantly, he watched the picnic meals. He had an evil smile on his face. "I think I know how I'm going to repay Shikamaru," he muttered to himself.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**A FEW MINUTES LATER...**

Neji stood outside Shikamaru's hotel room door. He raised his hand up and knocked on it a couple of times. He remained quiet as he heard faint footsteps approaching the door. Shikamaru cracked the door open just enough to see who it was. When he saw that it was Neji, he glared at him and quickly tried to slam the door. Neji jammed his upper arm into the crack to prevent the door from being slammed shut. "Hold on Shikamaru!" demanded Neji. "I understand that you are very upset with me. But I want to talk to you! Just let me into your room, please."

Shikamaru continued to eye him suspiciously. He then noticed the green bag in his hands. "What's in the bag?" asked Shikamaru.

"It's a surprise," replied Neji. "If you let me in, I might give it to you."

Shikamaru stared at the green bag, curious and worried as to what might be inside. "I assure you it's not dangerous," comforted Neji. "It's a good surprise. Just let me in and I'll give you the surprise."

Shikamaru stood there, silent, for a few minutes. He opened the door wider. "Come on inside," welcomed Shikamaru. Shikamaru plopped himself down on the bed while Neji walked inside. Shikamaru remained indifferent, keeping his anger and jealously inside. He stared at the wall while Neji stood in between the two beds inside. "So, what do you want?" asked Shikamaru.

"Well," began Neji, "I ran into Tenten just now and apparently, you told her a few things that you know and I know I never said."

"Really?" asked Shikamaru, playing dumb. "What kind of things?"

"You said that today was one of the best days I ever had and she was the most important person to me. I never said that before."

"But you would have said that eventually, and aren't those your true feelings?"

"Well yes, but how you would know that? Or a better question is why did you tell her that? I mean, surely, you could have told her that I only loved her just so I can win some challenge...similar to what I did to you."

Shikamaru only laughed as he sat upright on the bed. "Trust me Neji, I was **very** tempted to tell her," explained Shikamaru. "But I decided against it. I figured that a serious, no-nonsense guy like you could use a woman in your life. Tenten really has changed you for the better, so rather than ruin what you have and make you even more of a stick-in-the-ass than you are now, I thought I get Tenten to like you even more so you'd be a little happier with your life."

Neji couldn't help but smile at Shikamaru's generosity. "That was a nice thing you did for me," complimented Neji.

"Yeah well, you're welcome...you bastard," replied Shikamaru. Shikamaru then lied back down onto his bed.

Neji then remember something else that Tenten told him. "Hey, are you going to tell me what you have in that bag?" Shikamaru asked.

"I will if you answer me one more question," replied Neji.

"Alright, what's your next question?"

"When Tenten saw you, you were in the hallway," began Neji. "From what she told me, you regret all that you said about Ino and you want to make it up to her."

Shikamaru stared at the ceiling while Neji looked at him, waiting for an answer. Shikamaru took a deep breath and gave Neji his answer. "I do regret everything I said about Ino," he said.

"Really? Is it because of the challenge or...are you actually in love with her?" Neji asked.

Shikamaru hesitated to answer. Even though he knew Neji wasn't the arrogant jerk he originally thought he was going to act like, he still wondered if spilling out his feelings was a manly thing to do. Regardless of that worry, he sat up on the bed and looked Neji in the eyes. "I love her," Shikamaru admitted at last. "When I kissed her, I felt a strange feeling that I have never felt before with her. Just like you, I didn't think much of her. But after spending all that time with her, I learned she's not as bossy as I thought she was."

"Well, if that's true, then why..."

"Because," interrupted Shikamaru, "I thought you were going to joke about how much of a sissy I am if I said my true feelings about her."

"Why would I do that? I was true to my feelings."

"Well, I **was** going to explain it to you earlier, but you never gave me a chance to speak."

"Oh. Oh right, I guess I never did let you explain."

"It doesn't make a difference anyway. Ino is angry at me and I doubt she'll give me another chance."

Shikamaru then turned to the wall and let out a depressed sigh. Neji grew upset as he watched Shikamaru stare sadly at the wall. "Shikamaru, I'm...I'm sorry for what I did earlier," apologized Neji. "If I had known your true feelings for Ino, I wouldn't have broken you two up. I want to make it up to you."

"How? Are you going to get me and Ino back together?" Shikamaru asked.

"Uhh...not exactly," replied Neji. "What I am going to do for you is give you the tools that you can use to win back Ino."

Neji then reached into the green bag and took out two picnic meals, both of them had food placed on top of a white tray and a plastic veering kept the freshness sealed. The two meals had different food. One box had fried chicken, cole slaw, potato salad, and apple pie. The other one contained miso-glazed salmon, vegetable spring roll, soba noodle salad, and mandarin orange cake.

Shikamaru had a puzzled look on his face as Neji placed the food on his bed. "Food? That's it?" he questioned. "This is what's supposed to make Ino fall in love with me again?"

"It's not the food that will impress her, it's these!"

Neji then pulled out two small white slips of paper with the "World of Color" logo printed on the top. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at these two tickets, especially when he caught a glimpse of the "World of Color" logo. He reached up, snatched the two tickets from Neji's hands, and read the writing inscribed on them.

THIS PASS IS VALID FOR ONE (1) GUEST FOR THE **9:00 P.M.** PERFORMANCE.

"These are FASTPASSes for the show!" exclaimed Shikamaru. "Where did you get these?"

"Each meal comes with one ticket for the show," explained Neji. "You are very lucky that I got the very last two."

"I didn't know you could do that!"

"As you may have noticed Shikamaru, there are two FASTPASS tickets. One is for you, and...well, even someone with a lower IQ than you knows would know who the other FASTPASS ticket is for."

Shikamaru turned to Neji, who only smirked at him. "I don't think Ino is going to wait to go with me," grumbled Shikamaru. "The first thing she'll do is pummel me to death."

"You better find a way to restrain her and talk things out," suggested Neji.

"Any ideas?" Shikamaru asked.

"Well, unfortunately, I can't help you. Tenten is waiting for me downstairs and I don't wait to keep her waiting. Besides, we'll be late for the show, as will you."

Suddenly, there was loud banging at Shikamaru's door. "Shikamaru, open this door!" shouted a voice.

Neji and Shikamaru both turned to the door, eyes opened wide. They recognized the loud, shrill voice almost instantly. "Oh crap! Ino's here!" worried Shikamaru.

"Well, like I said before, Tenten is waiting for me downstairs. I shouldn't keep her waiting," Neji said, frantically. He walked briskly towards the balcony. "Wait...you're just leaving me like that?" Shikamaru asked.

"Surely now Shikamaru, you can handle someone like Ino," Neji said, standing on top of the balcony railing. "Just find some way to restrain her and tell her how you really feel about her. I know you can do it."

Neji then jumped down from the balcony, landing on one of the rooftops of the adjacent buildings. Shikamaru looked outside his balcony and saw that Neji had landed safely on his feet outside of the closed pool area. Neji then casually strolled back into the building to meet up with Tenten.

The loud banging continued. Shikamaru looked all around his room, trying to find some way to keep Ino from killing him. He then noticed the shadow looming over the entranceway. Shikamaru then smacked himself on his forehead. "Oh duh! Why didn't I think of that sooner?" he asked, himself. He then went to work making the lights and the room brighter.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Shikamaru, if you don't open this door, I'm going to break it down!" Ino shouted from outside, as she hammered the door with the side of her right fist. Ino leaned herself near the wall and impatiently tapped her fingers on said wall as she waited for Shikamaru to open the door.

Suddenly, there was a small click and the door cracked open just a bit. Ino quickly drove her shoulder into the door, making it swing violently into the wall. "Where are you?" she asked, angrily.

She frantically looked all around the room and saw Shikamaru standing in front of her. "Ah, there you are!" she shouted.

Instantly, she wanted to tackle him to the ground and beat his face in. But at that moment, her body froze up. Her limbs felt numb, as if something got a hold of Ino. Ino tried hard to move, but something kept her from doing so. It felt as if she was going through sleep paralysis.

Ino glanced down and saw one long shadow between her and Shikamaru. Almost immediately, she knew what was going on. "Never did I think I would have to use the Shadow Possession Jutsu on one of my own teammates," smirked Shikamaru.

"Let me go, Shikamaru!" demanded Ino. "You're only making things worse for you!"

"Exactly the reason why I had to use it," explained Shikamaru.

He reached back and stretched his arm. Ino, being that her body was being controlled by the Shadow Possession Jutsu, also reached back and stretched her arm out. However, she grabbed a hold of the door. Shikamaru then made Ino's body shut the door behind her. "No one needs to hear this," remarked Shikamaru. "Anyway, I have to do this Ino. I just want you to listen to me, Ino. I can explain everything."

"There's nothing to explain. You're nothing but a cold-hearted, selfish jerk who only thinks of women as trophies that you can parade around to all of your friends."

"No, that's not me at all!" protested Shikamaru. "Just listen to me!"

"No, you listen to me!" demanded Ino. "I have a lot to say to you! So you better shut up and listen!"

Everything was silent between the two. Shikamaru continued to look at the angry blonde in front of him. Normally, he would try to say his piece, but he figured out a better way. Seeing as how Shikamaru can keep the Shadow Possession Jutsu going for quite a while, Ino will have to listen to him eventually. "Okay Ino," he agreed. "Whatever hateful thing you have to say to me, do it now."

"And you're going to listen?" Ino asked.

"Well I have to stay here and keep the jutsu going, so I have no choice."

"Oh! Well...okay then."

Ino took a deep breath and began to vent her anger towards Shikamaru. "Look, is bragging rights really all I am worth to you? Just someone that you can parade around as proof that you're better than everybody? At least I'm worth more than you are! Lazy slackers like you aren't worth much to women. You will be miserable for the rest of your life. Your views on women don't help you out much either. You know what? I don't care if you don't love me, because you're just lost the only girlfriend you were even going to get in your whole lifetime! I'm finished with you!"

Ino felt her face getting hot after her rant. She took several deep breaths to try and calm herself down. Shikamaru looked at her, surprised and shocked at her words. "_Wow...Ino really lets me have it when I piss her off,_" thought Shikamaru.

Shikamaru watched as Ino glared at him. "Are you finished?" asked Shikamaru.

"Yeah...I'm done," panted Ino. "Now will you release me from your Shadow Jutsu?"

"Not yet," replied Shikamaru. "Ino...when you say you're finished with me, I know you're lying."

"No! I'm telling you the truth!" protested Ino. "I don't love you anymore and I hope that you will be sad and miserable for the rest of your life!"

"You don't love me? I want you to look me in the eyes and repeat that one more time. I'm not letting you go until you do that. If you look into my eyes and say that you don't love me, I'll release you from my jutsu and I'll let you beat my face in."

"Alright, fine!"

Ino stared right into Shikamaru's eyes, ready to tell him off once more. She stared into Shikamaru's brown eyes and Shikamaru looked back into her bright blue ones. Shikamaru waited for Ino to tell him that she's done with him, but seconds passed and she said nothing. "Boy Ino, you take forever to say four simple words," smirked Shikamaru. "If you really were done with me, you could have said it in two seconds."

Ino didn't give him a response. She continued to stare him in the eyes. After a few more seconds have passed, her pupils suddenly shifted slightly to the left of Shikamaru. Unfortunately for her, he caught it. "I knew it," boasted Shikamaru. "You still have feelings for me."

"Oh alright, fine!" confessed Ino. "Maybe a small part of me...a _**really**_ small part of me still likes you. But I don't want to love you anymore! You're nothing but a big jerk!"

"Look," began Shikamaru, "I understand you're angry at me. I don't blame you. I said some really nasty things that I shouldn't have said. But Ino, you have to understand, I didn't mean anything by what said."

"Yeah right," refused Ino. "If you didn't mean it, why did you say it?"

"Well...I'm just going to say that I was just being stupid."

"Well, at least you're right about something. Now release me, you idiot!"

"I'm not done talking. Ino, I'm really sorry about all the things I said about you. I really didn't mean any of it. I care about you a lot and I really do love you. But all I can say is that I had a great time with you today and yesterday. I know you had fun too. And I know you felt fireworks going off after you and I kissed. I don't want it to be tarnished because of some stupid comments I made. I'm not saying you should love me again, but at least give me one more chance."

Ino glanced at the ground, thinking to herself. "You know Shikamaru, I felt really hurt after what you said," Ino said, sadly. "I did have a lot of great memories of you from this trip, and that kiss felt wonderful, but after what just happened moments ago..."

"Well, I want to make it up to you," offered Shikamaru. "You still want to see World of Color?"

"I would love to, but we don't have any FASTPASSes and they're sold out," reminded Ino.

"Not quite."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I actually found out another way to see the show."

Shikamaru then turned around and walked towards his bed (not realizing that his Shadow Possession Jutsu still had a hold of Ino). "I found out that you can..."

Shikamaru was interrupted when he heard a loud thud. He turned his head and saw that he caused Ino to turn around and walk into the door face-first. "Oh!" exclaimed Shikamaru as he put his fist up to his mouth. Ino turned her heard around and glared at him angrily. Shikamaru quickly called off the jutsu. Ino was now able to move around freely.

"Anyway, I found out that you can buy these food meals, and every one you buy comes with a FASTPASS for the show," explained Shikamaru. He then showed Ino the two boxes of food and the two FASTPASSes that come with them. "Really?" Ino asked, excited and a bit surprised. "I didn't know you could do that."

"I didn't either. But once I found out, I hurried over to the place that they were selling them and I managed to get the last two meals that they had," lied Shikamaru.

"Wow...I can't believe you actually managed to get tickets for the show," remarked Ino.

"So, what do you say, Ino? Want to go see World of Color with me?" Shikamaru asked.

Ino was still hesitant as to give Shikamaru another change. But she really wanted to see the show. Plus, when she turned to Shikamaru, he had on the most sympathetic expression on his face. She then turned back to the food boxes in front of her. "Well okay," she agreed. "Let's go see World of Color."

"Alright!" celebrated Shikamaru. "But we got to hurry! The show starts in just a few minutes."

"Oh then, let's go!"

Ino and Shikamaru grabbed their picnic meals and bolted out the door. The two reached the elevators and pressed the "down" button, calling for an elevator. While the two waited for the elevator to come up, they quickly saw Kiba and Choji limping their way down the hallway. The two both clutched onto their stomachs as they limped. "Choji, what happened to you?" asked Shikamaru.

"Did you eat too much?" taunted Ino.

"Not quite," Choji replied, weakly.

Shikamaru and Ino said nothing more afterwards as the elevator doors opened. The two stepped inside and made their way to Paradise Park.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**A/N:** Wow...I think I'm really outdid myself with these two rewritten chapters. I've accomplished my original goal of making Shikamaru seem less like a jerk. Hopefully, everyone enjoys the changes I made.

**NEXT TIME: **World of Color with Shikamaru and Ino!


	10. The Wonderful World of Color!

"Ninja Love"

By MisterAnimeFan

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

After Shikamaru obtained "World of Color" picnic meals from Neji, he managed to convince Ino to see the show with him and give him another chance to prove that he was sorry about before. Ino agreed and the two made their way from the room to California Adventure.

It was 8:55 p.m. five minutes before World of Color was scheduled to begin its first show. Those who were unfortunately enough to not get a FASTPASS were in front of the park partying at Glow Fest, a backlit street party featuring DJ's, music, and alcoholic drinks.

The entire back part of California Adventure had been closed off to everyone who wasn't there to see the show. A barricade kept people from entering. It ran from the Pacific Wharf to the Golden Vine Winery and then to the construction site of the Little Mermaid dark ride.

Shikamaru and Ino rushed past the Grizzly River Run and had to push and shove their way through the crowd trying to get any view of the show. "Excuse me! Pardon me!" shouted Shikamaru, as he and Ino pushed his through the crowd.

Soon, they reached the barricade, where a group of cast members kept watch over the entire crowd. They saw that Shikamaru and Ino were trying to get past, so they quickly stopped them. "I'm sorry you two," apologized the cast member. "But only those who are here to see World of Color may enter this area."

Shikamaru and Ino then showed the cast members their two FASTPASS tickets. The cast member grabbed them and examined them carefully. He then turned back to the two. "Alright, you guys can come in," nodded the cast member.

Everyone behind them groaned as the two pushed aside the barricade. They quickly made their way to the leftmost side of Paradise Park nearest the bridge. They stood on a raised platform, allowing them to see the show without having someone's head blocking the view. "Well, here we are!" Shikamaru said, happily. "I didn't think we would be able to get a spot tonight."

"And we got food too!" added Ino.

"Oh yeah!" Shikamaru exclaimed.

He reached into his bag and pulled the two meals out. The plastic covering that sealed the food inside kept the heat circulating inside, keeping the food warm and making the inside foggy. "Which one do you want?" asked Shikamaru. "I got one with chicken, and the other one with salmon."

Ino looked over the two picnic meals, thinking about which one she wanted. "Hmmm..."she pondered. "The fried chicken looks greasy, so I'll take the salmon!"

Shikamaru then handed Ino the "Taste of Asia" meal while Shikamaru took the "All-American" meal. They balanced the boxes on the railings and broke the plastic covering off. The two began to eat as they eagerly waited for the show to start. "You know, this stuff isn't that bad," commented Shikamaru as he ate a piece of his chicken.

"The salmon is good too," added Shikamaru. "I'm just glad that you decided to go with me to see the show."

"Well, don't think that I'm going to forgive you," replied Ino. "I just want to see the show."

"Okay...fair enough."

Suddenly, all of the lights went out and the music began. The crowd erupted in cheers as bright lights made the water sparkle. Colored spotlights beamed up into the air and small water fountains made small arches above the lake. Everything stopped, several spotlights lit up the sky, and the Fun Wheel shone brightly with all sorts of different colors. The music paused for a brief moment.

_Walt Disney presents...__**the Wonderful World of Color!**_

A mist screen appeared between two water fountains. Some words by Walt Disney were projected onto the mist screen: "Every child is blessed with a vivid imagination." Tinkerbell then appeared and snapped her wand, making pixie dust fly everywhere. Everything dark was again. The music continued to softly echo throughout the area. The lake illuminated with all sorts of bright colors. The water fountains continuously spurted up and down from the lake, going no higher than above the audience's heads.

Once the main theme began playing, a single blue fountain shot up high in the sky, wowing everybody down below.

_The world is a carousel of color!_

_Wonderful, wonderful color!_

_A rainbow of imagination!_

As the last line was sung, a rainbow of colors emerged from the lake. The fountains changed colors to match the song being played.

_A blue rolling stream..._

_The red summer rose..._

_A sunset in the sky..._

_Beauty untold is ours to behold…_

_To dazzle your mind and your eyes!_

Suddenly, as the tempo of the music grew louder, all of the fountains ascended towards the night sky, creating a wall of water with many colors. The fans gasped at the sight.

_The Wonderful World of Color!_

_The Wonderful World of Color!_

_So wonderful...so beautiful...to see!_

_Adventure is waiting!_

_Let it open your eyes!_

_Imagine a sea where wonders can be!_

_It's journey can hold a SURPRISE!_

"This is so beautiful," awed Ino, as she watched the colorful fountains dance around to the serene music.

"Yeah, but I think just being with you makes this show even better," complimented Shikamaru.

Ino smiled at the compliment, but when she turned back to watch the show, she felt one of his fingers get close to her hand. Without having to look at him, Ino quickly pulled her hand away and slapped Shikamaru's hand. "Keep your hands to yourself, grabby!" scolded Ino. "It won't be that easy!"

The show continued with the fountains and mist screens being synced to "Part of Your World" from _The Little Mermaid_. Ino and Shikamaru slowly ate away at their picnic meals as the "Under the Sea" portion of the show took place in the lake. During the song, a load of bubbles flew above the audience's heads. Ino laughed as some of the younger children jumped to try to grab them.

After the salsa rendition of "Under the Sea", Crush the sea turtle from _Finding Nemo_ appeared on the mist screens, riding the East Australian Current. "_Grab shell, dude!_" Crush shouted. The water fountains shot up in the sky and created a small arch around the mist screen, simulating a sea current.

Crush then left and the water fountains calmed down. Dory and Marlin appeared, seemingly lost. The crowd laughed as Dory tried to speak whale. "Hey Ino, remember when we went on the submarine ride at Disneyland?" asked Shikamaru.

"Yeah, that was fun," remembered Ino. "It was the first time I ever saw you actually have fun."

Ino turned back to the show and saw a giant whale's mouth swallow Dory and Marlin.  
It was pretty funny how we were eaten by a whale," remembered Ino.

"Yeah, I remember that!" exclaimed Shikamaru. "We had to blown out of its blowhole!"

Both Shikamaru and Ino laughed as they remembered their ride on the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.

After seeing some flying whales on the mist screens, Eva and Wall-E from _Wall-E_ flew onto the mist screens. Some of the people in the crowd cheered as Eva and Wall-E danced around in space. The shot of Eva spinning Wall-E around triggered a memory in Ino's brain. Ino began to think about yesterday at Disneyland, when she and Shikamaru were on Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin.

_"What's going on?" asked Shikamaru. "Ino, stop spinning the wheel!"_

_"No way! This is fun!" Ino shouted, happily._

_Shikamaru and Ino devoted most of their ride time fighting over control of the steering wheel. Because they were so busy fighting, they didn't see any of the special effects._

Regardless of not seeing any of the effects, Ino couldn't help but laugh, remembering Shikamaru's expression throughout the entire ride. Shikamaru heard her laugh. "What are you laughing about?" he asked.

"Just thinking about the Roger Rabbit ride," answered Ino.

"Oh yeah," groaned Shikamaru. "That wasn't one of my favorites."

"Oh you baby!"

Back in the show, Wall-E used the fire extinguisher to propel himself off the mist screens. A cloudy sky and a bedpost appeared on the mist screens. The fans roared with applause when Woody and Buzz from _Toy Story_ showed up. "_Howdy, my name is Woody and this is Andy's room,_" introduced Woody.

"_I am Buzz Lightyear! I come in peace!_" Buzz then pressed a button, causing his wings to pop out. He continued to brag about how he can fly. "_Oh what...what? There are plastic! He can't fly,_" argued Woody.

"_They are a trillium carbonic alloy and I __**can**__ fly!"_ defended Buzz.

"_No, you can't!_

"_Yes, I can!"_

"_You can't!"_

"_Can!"_

"_Can't! Can't! Can't!"_

"_Tell you, I can fly around this room with my eyes closed!_"

"_Okay then, Mister Light-beer! Prove it!"_

"_Alright then, I will! Stand back everyone!_"

Buzz then jumped on Andy's bed several times before shooting up into the air. A green water fountain fired up high into the air, symbolizing Buzz's flight. The mist screen depicted Buzz and Emperor Zurg's battle in Gamma Quadrant Sector 4. Seeing Buzz shoot lasers at Zurg reminded Shikamaru about the ride across the lake: Toy Story Midway Mania.

On the first ride, Ino and Shikamaru both encouraged each other to win. After Shikamaru encouraged Ino to beat Sakura, Choji questioned him.

_"How come you want Ino to win over Sakura?" he asked._

_"I don't know," replied Shikamaru. "Ino's our teammate. Shouldn't we support her in what she does?"_

_"On a mission or a battle, then yes. But this is just an amusement park ride."_

_Choji thought to himself for a minute. He then smirked at Shikamaru. "Oh, I get it now. What you said back at Space Mountain and you two alone on the submarine ride...there's only one reason that could justify those actions. You like her, don't you?" Choji asked._

_"What? Are you being serious?" Shikamaru asked. "I'll tell you what I told Neji on the bus...me and Ino would never have a happy life if we were a couple."_

_"Who are you trying to convince, Shikamaru? Me or you?"_

_Shikamaru looked away from his teammate and friend. "Just for the record," continued Choji, "I wouldn't mind if you and Ino were a couple. It wouldn't hurt me."_

_"Trust me. I can't imagine her and I being together."_

_"Well, you know what they say, opposites attract."_

_"That's just a saying, not an actual rule."_

_Their argument was prematurely ended when their ride vehicles lurched into the "practice room."_

"_Actually, maybe opposites do attract_," thought Shikamaru. "_What? What I am talking about? I hate Ino's bossy attitude!_"

Shikamaru then turned back to Ino, who continued to watch Buzz Lightyear fight against Zurg. "_Well...like I said, she isn't always bossy_."

Ino then turned to Shikamaru. Shikamaru quickly turned away from her. "What were you staring at?" she asked.

"I was just thinking about the time you and I went on Toy Story Midway Mania," mentioned Shikamaru.

"Yeah, I remember that. You and me going at it against each other," Ino said, as reminiscing about their ride.

"What? Oh no! I was talking about the first time. But yeah, that was fun too!"

"I still can't believe you actually beat me!"

"What can I say? The smaller targets were worth more points, so I focused on those."

Ino and Shikamaru continued watching the show. After Buzz had defeated Zurg, everything went dark again and the fountains shut off. All that remained was a single mist screen. A single balloon then flew up on the mist screen. Soft, piano music began playing as more and more balloons appeared. Then, a large group of balloons took up the entire mist screen. It turned out that the group of balloons was holding up the house of Carl Fredrickson (from _Up_), allowing it to hover in the air. On the house's porch was Russell and Dug, the talking dog.

"_My name is Dug! I have just met you and I love you! Squirrel!_"

The bright yellow house then disappeared. The beginning notes of "A Whole New World" began to play. On the mist screen, Aladdin and Jasmine were flying on their magic carpet. As Ino watched the two, instead of seeing Aladdin and Jasmine flying on a magic carpet, she saw her and Shikamaru on a glider flying over California. Once again, she was having another flashback. This time, it was her and Shikamaru on Soarin' over California. Shikamaru absolutely loved the ride. He loved the smooth motion, the relaxing scenery, and the wonderful music.

"Hey Shikamaru," said Ino.

"Yeah?" asked Shikamaru.

"You know, since we're leaving tomorrow," began Ino. "I wanted to know...what was your favorite ride here?"

"Easy, Soarin' over California," replied Shikamaru.

"Of course," Ino said.

"What? You didn't like that, right?"

"No! I love that ride, I just had a feeling you would say that."

"I just love how smooth it was."

"Yeah, I know you do."

The show continued onwards, showing scenes from _Pocahontas_ and _Fantasia 2000_ onto the mist screens. The water fountains danced around and spotlights beamed into the air as these scenes played. It was especially lively when the Genie from _Aladdin_ was on the mist screens, singing "Friend Like Me."

After "Just around the Riverbend" played, everything got dark once again and the water fountains have ceased. Again, only one mist screen remained running. A single leaf fluttered in the wind materialized on the mist screen. The leaf turned over to reveal Heimlich, the small, portly caterpillar from _a bug's life_. "_Oh! From here, you all look like little ants!_" he shouted.

Suddenly, it began to rain (on the mist screen). The wind blew Heimlich away. An old, worn-out windmill emerged onto the mist screen. The white lights began to flash rapidly in the crowd, acting as thunder. The sinister music of "Little April Showers" played, creating a more ominous atmosphere amongst the crowd watching the show. Clouds swirled around the Old Mill, but with the eerily moaning noises coming from the music, people mistaken them for ghosts. The noise sounded like that of wind going through a small hole, creating a howling noise.

Shikamaru turned to Ino and saw that she was growing anxious at what was happening. "Ino, is something wrong?" asked Shikamaru.

"Well...this part is just giving me a few goosebumps," replied Ino. "The music sounds really creepy."

Shikamaru debated if he wanted to comfort her or not. Earlier, he tried to grab her hand, which resulted in immediate rejection from her. Nonetheless, Shikamaru slowly slid his hand over to hers. As soon as his index finger touched hers, Shikamaru prepared for Ino to slap it away. But she didn't. Shikamaru then grabbed her entire hand. This time, Ino noticed and looked down. "What are you doing?" asked Ino.

"You seemed nervous," Shikamaru replied. "Just relax. It's only a show."

Ino still looked at him with wide-open eyes. Shikamaru was afraid that she might slap him. But she instead went back to watching the show, hand-in-hand. "_Well, I guess I'm making some progress,_" thought Shikamaru. "_I can hold hands with Ino again._"

The lights then began flashing rapidly in all sorts of different colors. Suddenly, everything calmed down and Captain Jack Sparrow appeared on the mist screens. The fans screamed as loud as they can. Shikamaru had to cover his ears to prevent his eardrums from being blown out by Ino's high-pitched screaming. The ghost ship from _Pirates of the Caribbean_ appeared on the mist screen. A young child began to ominously sing.

_Yo ho yo ho, a pirate's life for me..._

Suddenly, everything grew red, from the water fountains to the lights, as _He's a Pirate_ echoed throughout Paradise Pier. Several of the water fountains joined together to create three mini water domes. A wall of water would suddenly erupt from the lake and fire high into the sky. Even a couple of flamethrowers shot off a spark of fire in the sky.

At the end of the song, it grew dark (yet again) and Davy Jones' head was projected onto the mist screens. "_Ha, ha, ha!_" he laughed._ "Aye! Tales there be aplenty in this cursed place!_" His head then dissolved and disappeared.

The show continued on, but this time, Judge Frollo (_The Hunchback of Notre Dame) _and Dr. Facilier (_Princess and the Frog_) took the place of Davy Jones. As soon as the witch doctor clapped his hands together, a single flame and many water fountains shot up high in the air as the sinister musical combination of "Firebird Suite" and "Hellfire" played over the speakers. Everything was red and more and more fire began to erupt from the lake. "Well, this show got dark," commented Shikamaru.

"But it's still so cool-looking!" squealed Ino.

But then, the water fountains and lights slowly lowered and turned blue. The Chernabog appeared on another mist screen off to the side. The audience roared as "Night on Bald Mountain" played. The Chernabog's devilish figure stood high above the lake. He clasped his hands together and one of the flamethrowers shot off a ball of fire. Every time he would do that, a fireball went off, illuminating Paradise Park for a fraction of a second. The water fountains were shot up towards the sky.

Then, for a moment, it was dark. Then, "Hellfire" played once more and the entire lake was invaded by streams of fire. "Whoa!" both Shikamaru and Ino shouted, as the fire shot high up into the air. The heat could be felt all around the lake. As the song drew to a close, the lake got dark and the Chernabog's face appeared once more. Then erupted with all of the flamethrowers going off at once! Shikamaru and Ino couldn't help but clap and cheer along with everyone else.

Everything was quiet. The lake, spotlights, and mist screens were all glowing green. Scar, the villain from _The Lion King_, appeared on the screens and slowly pounced his way closer to the audience. He then disappeared, but his voice could still be heard. "_Mufasa, quick! Stampede...in the gorge! Simba's there!_"

"_Simba?_"

The lights turned red again and all of the mist screens came up, both front and back. The white, smoky outline of a herd of bison then stomped their way towards the crowd. With the way the mist screens were set up, it almost felt as if the bison were about to step on the crowd. "This is so awesome!" Ino shouted, happily.

"This is a lot better than I thought it would be!" added Shikamaru.

The lights began flashing rapidly until several red spotlights beamed up into the air. Scar's oily voice could be heard once more. "_Long live the king_!"

The red spotlights turned off one by one as Mufasa fell to his death, recreating the famous scene from the movie. The entire area went dark.

Then, the soft melody of "So Close" from the movie _Enchanted_ began playing and the colorful fountains slowly rose up. Shikamaru and Ino found it odd since the last ten minutes was so loud, dark, and sinister. Regardless they watched as the fountains began to slowly dance along to the music. On the mist screens, they showed some of the most heartwarming scenes from various Disney movies. Shikamaru couldn't help but feel a little bit of emotion in his stomach, as one of the scenes reminded him of how Ino let him rest his head on her lap. He actually fell asleep in her lap.

"Hey Ino, remember when we were on the riverboat?" asked Shikamaru.

"Huh?" Ino asked. "Oh yeah! I remember. You were sleeping in my lap. You felt so relaxed and calm and innocent. You were pretty cute, actually."

"Cute?" asked Shikamaru. "Did you say that I was cute when I'm sleeping?"

"Yeah, I did," replied Ino.

Shikamaru only smiled as he looked at Ino's face. He thought that he saw her blushing, but it was a little too dark to tell. Ino kept watching the show, but was interrupted when Shikamaru placed his head on her shoulder. She was a bit surprised when he did this. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Nothing, my head just feels heavy," answered Shikamaru.

"You're such a liar," joked Ino.

"No, it's true. I'm starting to get tired."

Rather than push him off, Ino instead just smiled and went back to watching the show. As the show continued on, Shikamaru shivered as he felt someone's hands going up his neck and running through his hair. Ino giggled as she continued stroking his hair. "Does that feel good?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied. "It's kind of soothing."

The music suddenly cut out when the mist screens showed a shot of Belle crying over a (supposedly) dead Beast. Belle buried her face into Beast's chest. "_I love you_," she murmured.

As those words were echoed throughout Paradise Park, everyone awed. Shikamaru and Ino, however, felt a tingling feeling going down the back of their spine as those words were uttered. The next few scenes projected on the mist screens showed some of the more famous kiss scenes between the Disney princesses and their loved ones. All of these screens reminded both Shikamaru and Ino of their kiss from earlier in the night.

Shikamaru and Ino both looked each other in the eyes. They remembered all of the emotions they went through as they shared that passionate kiss. The feelings and emotions were starting to come back to them. In fact, looking each other in the eyes is what started the kiss to begin with. However, for this situation, the two only smiled at each other. The two went back to watching the show. But this time, the two had their arms wrapped around each other's. "Ino, I'm so happy that you came with me to see the show," praised Shikamaru.

"Yeah well...everything is so much fun with you around," replied Ino.

They awed as the water fountains flew high into the air with white heavenly spotlights tracking them. The lake was veiled in mist, left behind by the water fountains and mist screens. The music then quieted down and the entire area was dark.

But it didn't stay that way for long! The music began warming up again and yellow and purple fountains quickly shot up into the sky. The lake then exploded with bright and beautiful color! Even the Fun Wheel's lights were flickering on and off with the show. The water fountains and spotlights danced and the theme song played once more!

_The world is a carousel of color!_

_Beautiful, marvelous color!_

_Its dreams that you choose_

_Its wish you embrace_

_That can lead to a fabulous, faraway place!_

_OF COLOR!_

_COLOR!_

The fans cheered as the Cheshire Cat from _Alice in Wonderland_ appeared through a combination of mist screens for the face and water fountains for his stripes. Another mist screen appeared up front, in front of the audience. It showed scenes from the entire show, recapping it in only a few seconds.

_The wonderful world of color!_

_The wonderful world of color!_

_The most wonderful!_

_Wonderful!_

_Colorful!_

_(Colorful!)_

_In this beautiful…_

_WORLD OF COLOR!_

After the recap of the show, everyone roared with applause as Mickey Mouse appeared in front of everyone, dressed in his Sorcerer's Apprentice outfit. It looked as if he was controlling the water. The water fountains formed around him, creating his signature blue hat.

Then, every water fountain in the lake shot up straight up in the air. They all glowed brightly with every color of the rainbow! Everyone cheered as the show was ending.

Everything went dark...and then the show erupted with one last dose of fire from the flamethrowers! Everyone gasped in amazement as they felt the heat radiating from the fire. The water fountains then shot up straight up very high into the air, the spotlights projecting their colors onto the water fountains, blinding everybody with all sorts of color!

The music and lights then turned off, ending the show! Everyone clapped and cheered as the water fountains quickly died down, dousing some people with a little mist. The regular park lights slowly turned on, illuminating the area once again. Shikamaru and Ino clapped with everyone else as only a single mist screen, with the words "WORLD OF COLOR" projected onto them remained in the lake.

After the show, the pathways became very crowded as everyone tried to leave the park all at once. The cast members tried to alleviate the bottlenecking by making traffic flow in a one-way direction. Regardless it was a nightmare trying to leave.

Shikamaru and Ino were among the people trying to leave. For the most part, they had no problems until they reached the entrance of _It's Tough to Be a Bug_. The crowd was so packed and condensed that no one could move. "God, this is such a huge drag," complained Shikamaru.

"Oh, don't let it get to you," soothed Ino.

Ino looked around and saw an empty park bench inside of "a bug's land."

"Here," she offered. "We'll sit on this bench until the crowds get lighter."

Shikamaru and Ino then sat on the metal bench as they watched people sluggishly try to move forward through the herd. "Oh man, that show was amazing!" praised Ino.

"Yeah, I can't argue with that," agreed Shikamaru. "Who would have thought that some dancing water would invoke so much emotion in me?"

"You know what was my favorite part?" asked Ino. "The part where they showed all of those kiss scenes, the princesses being in love, remember?"

"Oh...yeah I do."

"It reminded me of our kiss from earlier."

Everything was quiet between the two for the moment. Shikamaru only cleared his throat, breaking the silence for a moment. After a minute or so, Shikamaru began to speak again. "You know, that whole show reminded me of our vacation," spoke Shikamaru.

"Yeah, same here," agreed Ino.

"We had a lot of good times together these past two days," continued Shikamaru. "Hey Ino, during the show, when you let me rest my head on your shoulders, does that mean that you forgive me?"

Ino remained quiet as she grabbed her chin and began thinking. "Well...I don't know," replied Ino. "Should I really forgive you? How do I know you really do love me?"

Shikamaru grabbed Ino's hand and looked in her the eyes. "If I didn't you love, I wouldn't do this again," he remarked.

He then closed his eyes and pressed his lips against hers. Ino shut her eyes and absorbed the feeling of Shikamaru kissing her. The two squeezed each other's hand as both of them felt their spines tingle.

They broke away and looked into each other's eyes again. "Does that prove my point?" Shikamaru asked, slyly.

"It was good enough," laughed Ino.

The two stood up onto their feet, shut their eyes again, and they then hugged each other. "I love you," whispered Shikamaru.

"I love you too...you lazy bum," Ino whispered back. The two then let each other go. "So...are you ready to go back to the hotel room?" asked Ino.

"What are you talking about? Don't you want to see the fireworks at Disneyland?" asked Shikamaru.

"How are we going to do that? We can't get through this crowd! Look!"

Shikamaru looked back towards the park entrance. Indeed, the pathways were still too crowded for anyone to move around. Shikamaru then turned back towards "a bug's land" and he looked up. He saw the Tower of Terror looming over the area lit up in purple lights. He then remembered that there was a small pathway between "a bug's land" and the Hollywood Pictures Backlot, which would take them straight to Tower of Terror. "I got an idea," smirked Shikamaru.

He grabbed Ino's hand and began to led her towards Tower of Terror. "Let's go!" he commanded.

"Where are we going?" asked Ino.

"Trust me, you'll love it!"

Shikamaru and Ino quickly dashed through the empty children's area and towards the Tower of Terror.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**A/N:** I can't believe I'm (finally) almost done with the rewrite. I'll talk about my thoughts on it in the next chapter.

I'm going to go ahead and skip to the finale, because I didn't think the other stuff in the previous chapters would add anything to story, plus I wanted to conclude the Shikamaru and Ino drama in a way that sounds believable. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

**NEXT TIME:** Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, in just one more chapter, the lights will dim on Main Street and the skies will light up with "Remember . . . Dreams Come True" one Disneyland's fireworks spectacular. Join our heroes as they watch the sky light up with all sorts of different pyrotechnics cherographed to a wonderful soundtrack. "Remember . . . Dreams Come True" will begin in just one more chapter.


	11. Fireworks Finale

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

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"_Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, in just 15 minutes, Tinkerbell will bring the skies above Sleeping Beauty Castle to life like never before. We invite you to join us as we present our fireworks spectacular, "Remember...Dreams Come True!_"_ For your viewing pleasures, the lights will dim as the show starts. For your safety, and the safety of others, please remain seated until the lights return to normal. "Remember...Dreams Come True" will begin in just 15 minutes."_

Main Street and Frontierland were packed with people watching "Fantasmic!" and waiting for the fireworks.

In Frontierland, many people stood along the banks of the Rivers of America to experience "Fantasmic!" a nighttime show involving dancing water, mist screens, Disney characters, fireworks, lasers, and some of the best effects around.

Right now, the villains were trying to take over Tom Sawyer's Island. Mickey stood on stage as Maleficent taunted him. "_Now, you will deal with me! And all the powers of MY IMAGINATION!_" she shouted.

"_Oh no!_" Mickey shouted.

With a wave of her staff, an explosion went off and Maleficent began to ascent towards the sky. The stage went dark and the mist screens went up, portraying Maleficent's transformation in a dragon.

Neji and Tenten were in the crowd watching the show. They managed to get a spot in front up against the railing. "This is a great way to end our vacation," Tenten said.

"It is," agreed Neji. "I'm glad we got a good spot for the show."

As the villains continued laughing, Tenten placed her elbows on the railing in front of her and sighed. "Yeah..." she groaned.

"Something wrong?" asked Neji.

"Oh nothing," replied Tenten, nonchalantly.

"It's not "nothing." There's something wrong."

Tenten breathed through her nose as she watched the show. "Well...back at the hotel...you said that every time you were around me, you feel more comfortable and you loosen up a bit," reminded Tenten.

"It's true, I do," replied Neji.

"Well, what about in Konoha?" asked Tenten. "I was wondering if that would still be true back home."

"Huh?"  
"Tell me, would you smile more if you and I did more things together back home? Because I like this fun-loving, easy-going Neji, and not the serious, no-nonsense Neji."

Neji looked into Tenten's brown eyes. He couldn't help but feel his body melt at the sight of looking into her eyes. He glanced up and saw that her hair was tied up in two buns. He smiled at her. "Maybe I will smile a little more," he smirked. "But only on one condition."

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Tenten asked.

Neji then reached up and removed the braids in her hair, letting it cascade down past her shoulders. "I'll smile a little more if you promise that you'll let your hair down more often," proposed Neji.

Tenten just laughed and smiled at him. "Fair enough," she agreed.

The two stared into each other's eyes and they continued to smile at each other. Neji then glanced upwards back towards the show. His eyes widened at the sight. "Oh my god!" he gasped.

"What is it?" Tenten asked. She turned around back towards the island and her eyes widened as well. "Whoa!" she shouted.

Once the mist screens slowly died down, it revealed a 45-foot-tall dragon on the island, looking over the crowd with smoke coming from its mouth and glowing yellow eyes. Mickey Mouse looked tiny in comparison to the giant beast. The dragon's head reached downwards and shot out a huge stream of fire from its mouth, setting the river on fire!

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Naruto, where are you taking me?" asked Hinata, as she and Naruto went up the emergency stairs towards the roof.

"Just hang on, I'll show you in a few minutes," replied Naruto.

The two climbed all the way to the roof of the Grand California Hotel. The two watched their footing as they cautiously walked down the sloped roof. Once they got near the edge of the roof, Naruto and Hinata sat down and looked out towards Sleeping Beauty Castle. "Naruto," Hinata spoke , softly. "What are we doing here?"

"Look at all of those people," laughed Naruto, looking at the crowded Main Street and entrance plaza. "They think they have found the perfect spot, but they don't know that the perfect spot is up here on the roof...next to you."

Hinata only smiled at Naruto's kind words. She then looked back out towards Disneyland. "So, we're going to watch the fireworks from here?" asked Hinata.

"That's the idea," replied Naruto.

"But how are we going to hear the music?" asked Hinata. Naruto then turned around and pointed to a hidden speaker on the back of the nearby Soarin' over California building. "There's a few hidden speakers back there that no one knows about. They should be able to play the music that goes with the fireworks."

The two sat closer together and grabbed each other's hands as they waited for the fireworks to begin.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Shikamaru, where are we going?" asked Ino.

She and Shikamaru had just finished watching "World of Color" reconciling their differences. The two were now running through "a bug's land" and through the pathway connecting it to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot. Shikamaru then stopped in front of the Tower of Terror. Ino looked up and immediately shivered at the idea of going on the idea. "Oh no, Shikamaru!" shouted Ino. "There is no way I'm going back on that crazy elevator!"

"Ino, just let me handle this," assured Shikamaru.

Shikamaru then walked up to the bellboy at the front entrance. Ino watched from a distance. "I'm sorry sir," apologized the bellboy. "But I'm afraid the Tower is closing for the night."

Shikamaru then whispered something in the bellboy's ear. Ino couldn't hear what he was saying. The bellboy looked at Shikamaru. "Sir, I'm sorry. But I don't think I can..."

The bellboy stopped as Shikamaru reached into his pocket and slipped something into the bellboy's hands. The bellboy looked down and widened his eyes at what was in his hands. He looked around, making sure no one was watching and he placed whatever was in his hands into his pocket. "If anyone asks, you two were the last riders and the elevator suddenly suffered from technical problems that also affected the ride's sound speakers," the bellboy said.

"Thank you so much!" praised Shikamaru.

Shikamaru then turned back to Ino. "Let's go," he commanded.

"I'm not going back on Tower of Terror," refused Ino.

"Just come on!" scolded Shikamaru. He grabbed Ino's hand and forced her into the ride's queue line. They used one of the emergency exits to bypass the pre-show and go straight to the loading area. Ino was getting frustrated by the second.

Shikamaru looked around the boiler room and saw one of the elevator doors open. He led Ino towards the open elevator and the two sat down in the seats inside. "What are we doing?" Ino asked, angrily.

"Look, I promise that you'll like this," replied Shikamaru. "Just sit down and put on your seatbelt."

Although reluctant, Ino sat down next to Shikamaru and fastened the seatbelt. Once they were locked in, the doors to the elevator closed and the elevator sped up to the top floor of the ride. Ino shut her eyes and clutched onto the handlebars on the side. The doors opened once the elevator reached the 13th floor. It shuttered, causing Ino to hold on tighter to the safety bars. She expected the elevator to drop, but it didn't. She opened her eyes slowly and saw that they were still at the top. "Ummm...what's going on?" asked Ino.

"You can relax," comforted Shikamaru. "The elevator is not going to drop us, at least, not until the fireworks are over."

"What do you mean?" asked Ino.

Ino looked out towards the view and she saw that the two had a great aerial view of the Disneyland Park. They would be able to see the fireworks. "How did you?" asked Ino.

"I paid the bellboy to stop the elevator at the top to let us get a good view of the fireworks," explained Shikamaru. "He'll even set the ride's speakers to play the music when it starts."

"You did that just for me?" asked Ino.

"Of course I did," replied Shikamaru. "You can't go to Disneyland without seeing the fireworks at least once, right?"

Ino smiled at Shikamaru as she reached up and kissed him on the cheek. "You're so sweet sometimes," she remarked. She held onto Shikamaru's arm as the two waited for the fireworks to begin.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back at Frontierland, Neji and Tenten were watching the finale for "Fantasmic!" Mickey Mouse has just vanquished the Disney villains, and was now finishing the show. He wore his _Sorcerer's Apprentice_ outfit and he waved his hand around, making fireworks shoot up high up into the air. He then disappeared and reappeared on the lower stage. He turned to the audience. "Some imagination, huh?" he laughed.

Mickey Mouse suddenly disappeared as fireworks went off into the air and spotlights spiraled around the island. Everything went dark for a moment, before one last firework popped, ending the show. Everybody along the Rivers of America was cheering, clapping, and applauding. The lights slowly turned back on allowing everyone to see where they were walking.

Tenten turned to Neji. "So, I guess we better go," she said.

"Hold on, Tenten, don't you want to see the fireworks?" he asked.

"I would love to, but we can't see them from here."

"Really? The map says you can."

Before he could say anything, the area went dark again and the music started warming up. "Alright we go!" shouted Naruto. Everyone on Main Street cheered as the music got louder. Suddenly, Sleeping Beauty Castle was brightly lit up.

After the music played for a few seconds, a woman's voice was heard.

_Good evening. This is Julie Andrews. Once upon a time, there was a magic kingdom, made of hopes and childhood fantasies. A timeless place where every land was filled with wonder. A place where everyone who entered its gaze was given the gift of the young at heart: the power to wish upon a star and unlock its magic. Are you ready to wish upon a star? Then its time to open your heart and remember...dreams comes true._

After the opening prologue, custom-made star-shaped fireworks lit up the sky, synchronized to "When You Wish upon a Star."

_When you wish upon a star_

_Makes no difference who you are_

_Anything your heart desires_

_Will come to you_

Sasuke and Sakura, who were watching the fireworks from in front of the Matterhorn, looked up and awed at the fireworks exploding in the sky. "Hard to believe, isn't it?" she asked. "50 years this place was built."

"You think something that old would be gone by now," Sasuke added.

"So Sasuke, are you glad you came on this trip with me?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you weren't really that happy to come here when I asked you."

"Well, that's because I thought Disneyland was some place with only small kiddy rides and annoying characters. But after spending some time here, I realize there's more to it than that."

"Like what?"

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting a ride like Space Mountain, where it throws you all over the place in the dark...or Tower of Terror, where an elevator tries to kill you...or the Matterhorn...or Big Thunder Mountain...actually, this place could scare a kid."

Sakura laughed as they continued to watch the fireworks.

_In 1955, a magical place was born. And in this marvelous kingdom, there lived many delightful friends who made our dreams come true, an enchanting place where storybook heroes and daring adventures waited around every corner._

The music grew louder as fireworks exploded into the air, as various Disney characters wished upon the stars.

_Tonight, we're going to share a wonderful dream come true together. In 1955, an amazing man named Walt Disney dreamt of a magic kingdom._

Everyone gasped as a real-life Tinkerbell flew above the castle, waving her wand and lighting up even more fireworks. As this took place, Walt Disney's Opening Day Dedication speech echoed throughout the park.

_To all who come to this happy place . . . welcome!_

_Disneyland is your land._

_Here age relieves fond memories of the past,_

_and here youth may savor the challenges and promises of the future._

_Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals,_

_the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America._

_With the hope that it may be a source of joy and inspiration_

_To all the world_

After the Opening Day speech was played, the music and fireworks stopped for a moment. Everyone thought that the show was over, so they began clapping and cheering. But the sound of a train whistle told everybody the show is far from over!

The next section of the fireworks show was a remembrance of the "E-Ticket" attractions that make up Disneyland. Along with the music from the attractions playing, fireworks, lasers, and flamethrowers also joined the show.

With each ride, there was a different gimmick. Different colored lights simulated the Electrical Parade and their blinking lights. Flamethrowers shot up high in the air symbolizing the danger and excitement from Indiana Jones segment. Small green fireworks flew in the air during the Haunted Mansion, acting as if they were ghosts. During the Pirates of the Caribbean segment, the Matterhorn and Big Thunder Mountain were engaged in combat, launching red fireworks at each other. Spinning fireworks went off during the Fantasyland/Toontown, which represented the craziness of the area. And with Tomorrowland being the land of the future, it involved a lot of lasers.

The entire second act of the fireworks made everybody remember all of the fun memories created on this trip.

Neji and Tenten continued to watch the fireworks show from the Rivers of America. They both smiled as they remembered their rides on the Haunted Mansion, Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, and Autopia. Neji hugged Tenten from behind and whispered into her ear. "Tenten, thank you for convincing me to come here," he muttered.

"You don't have to repeat yourself," replied Tenten, grabbing Neji's hand. "You already told me how much I mean to you."

"No...not yet."

Neji then turned Tenten around so that she was facing him. The two of them stared each other into their eyes. Both of them began blushing a little bit as they leaned in closer to each other. Neji then placed his lips onto Tenten's, surprising her with a very passionate kiss. It was only a quick kiss, but to the two, it felt like an eternity. The two broke away from each other and looked at each other again. The two then hugged each other, smiling as they enjoyed each other's warmth. They didn't say anything to each other. Then again, what more was there to say?

The two then turned back towards the sky to watch the rest of the fireworks.

After the Tomorrowland segment of the show, the music and fireworks stopped for another brief moment. The show was still not done yet. "When You Wished Upon a Star" played once again and Julie Andrews began narrating.

_Today, Walt Disney's magic kingdom has grown to be the Happiest Place on Earth to millions the world over, a place where anything is possible, where every dreamer may wish upon a star._

Tinkerbell then came down from the top of the Matterhorn to light up the sky once more.

As the fireworks was drawing to a close, Naruto and Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura, and Shikamaru and Ino looked into each other's eyes and they kissed passionately during the grand finale. Sparks and light littered the sky as the show concluded.

_Make a wish! Wishes!_

_Dream a Dream! Wishes!_

_From your heart!_

_And your wish...will...come...true!_

_Remember...Dreams Come True_

**THE END**

Oh man, it took me more than eight months, longer than I wanted to take rewriting this fanfiction, but I am finally done! Overall, I am very happy with how it turned out. I understand it's not exactly the best Naruto fanfiction on the site, but I'm happy with how many people liked the original story. I hope they like the rewrite even more.

Anyway, thank you all for the good reviews you gave me. As for what happened to Kiba and Choji, well...just read the epilogue!


	12. Epilogue

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**A SHORT EPILOGUE...**

After spending two days at the Disneyland Resort, it was time for everyone to head back to Konoha village. They packed everything up and were now waiting for the bus to take them the airport. They have had a lot of fun and found many surprises while vacationing. They bought no souvenirs, but the only souvenir they really needed were the memories that they created and shared as a group. And those memories were free souvenirs, something that can rarely be found at Disneyland.

As for Choji and Kiba, they were able to obtain free food throughout their entire vacation by impersonating health inspectors, and somehow they were able to get away with it!

Or so they think!

On the morning of departure, Choji and Kiba were having breakfast at the Storyteller's Café. The two had donned their disguises, Kiba including his "blind man" glasses. The two were not very talkative that morning. Akamaru stood next to Kiba's feet, whimpering as Kiba quietly bit into his waffles. Choji only coughed as he clutched his ribs. "Stupid Neji," he muttered, under his breath.

"Hey, just forget about it," Kiba said, quietly.

"If it wasn't for him, we could have seen World of Color!" complained Choji. "And I bet that fried chicken tasted good too!"

"Well, at least we saw the spotlights in the air. That's as good of a view as anyone is going to get with that stupid FASTPASS thing. But hey, you know what Choji, this is our last free meal before we have to go back to Konoha and pay for our food. So let's just forget about Neji and enjoy our food."

"I guess you're right."

Choji and Kiba then finished off the rest of their breakfast. As Kiba was picking his teeth with a toothpick, their waitress walked over to their table. "And how did you gentlemen enjoy your breakfast?" she asked.

"It was delicious!" Kiba praised.

"Yeah, I'll give Disney credit. For it being expensive, it sure it good," added Choji.

"I'm glad you gentlemen liked it," replied the waitress. "So listen guys, before I give you your check, there are two gentlemen here who wish to speak to you."

"Really? Who?" asked Choji.

Just then, two nicely dressed men joined their waitress. One was an older gentlemen dressed in a black suit and tie. The other was much younger and wore only a simple collared shit. They looked at Choji the Kiba. Choji and Kiba were anxious as to who they were. Something in their stomachs told them that these two men being here was a not a good thing. "Good morning gentlemen," one of the men said.

"How are you doing today?" the other asked.

"Ummm...not too bad," Kiba replied, nervously.

"Really? That's good. That's very good."

One of the men looked at Choji. "And you must be Mister Chojo Akamunchi," he said.

"Umm, yes. Can I ask who you two are?" Choji asked.

"Surely, you two would recognize fellow health inspectors," the older man said.

"What now?" Kiba asked, shocked.

The two men then flashed their California Department of Food Safety and Health badges at Kiba and Choji. Choji brought his palm up to his forehead. "Oh crap," he muttered.

"Mister Chojo Akamunchi, we are two health inspectors from the California Department of Food Safety and Health," introduced the elderly man. "The Disneyland Resort gave us a call yesterday about two suspicious gentlemen going into their restaurants and taking advantage of their authority. We were a little suspicious since there was no health inspection scheduled this week."

"We looked up both of your names in our records, and low and behold, neither of your names came up in the system."

Kiba and Choji could only stare at their empty plates as the two rubbed their eyes and their foreheads. They both knew they were screwed. "So, guess what you two are now?" asked the older man.

"We're busted, aren't we?" Kiba asked, solemnly.

"Indeed you are," the younger man said.

"Oh and you take off your sunglasses now," ordered the waitress. "Because we're not buying it."

Kiba did as he was told. The two both took deep breaths and pulled at their hairs. "How much trouble are we in?" Choji asked, on the verge of a breakdown.

"Well, you have two options," proposed the young man. "One, we could call the authorities, have them arrest you both, put you on trial, and if convicted, have you both serve a prison sentence."

"The other option," added the older man, "is to simply pay for every meal you had these past two days."

Kiba and Choji refused to look back up at the two health inspectors. They contemplated their options and decided which was the lesser of two evils. Choji turned his head towards the waitress. "How much do we own you?" Choji asked.

The waitress handed them their check, which had every meal they have eaten charged on it. Choji opened it up and took a quick glance inside. He immediately choked as he saw the high cost. He sat the check on the table and let out a depressed sigh. Kiba reached his hand over towards the bill, but Choji quickly stopped him. He glared at Kiba. "Trust me on this one. We can't afford it," he muttered.

"So you two will be taking the first option," assumed the older man.

Kiba looked around his surroundings and saw something on a nearby serving table that caught his attention. He got up from his seat and stretched his limbs. "No gentlemen, we won't take option one," refused Kiba. "And you know what, we won't take option two either. Instead, we'll take option three!"

In the blink of an eye, Kiba grabbed a nearby coffee pot and flung the hot coffee towards the younger man, thankfully missing the waitress. He then took the empty glass pot and shattered it on the older man's head. Both of the two health inspectors fell to the floor, screaming in anguish. The waitress and Choji were shocked. "Oh my God!" shouted the waitress.

"Kiba, what the hell are you doing?" Choji asked, angrily.

Kiba didn't answer. He only flipped the table over and booked it out of the restaurant. "Come on Akamaru! Let's get the hell out of here!" Kiba shouted, frantically. Kiba ran out of the room with Akamaru running beside him.

Everyone in the restaurant watched as Kiba disappeared out of sight. The waitress and Choji still couldn't believe what had happened. "Ma'am, I am so sorry!" apologized Choji.

"Sorry? You just broke a glass pot over someone's head!" screamed the waitress.

"That was him! Not me!"

"You two are no longer welcome here at Disneyland Resort!"

"Fair enough!" agreed Choji. "To be honest, your food is too damn expensive anyway!"

Choji then jogged out of the restaurant, chasing after Kiba. "Kiba, you idiot! Wait for me!" he shouted. And that was the last time the Disneyland Resort had ever seen those two!

**THE END**

Alright, NOW I am finally done with "Ninja Love!"

Now allow me to talk about my thoughts on this rewritten fanfiction.

Overall, I thought it was interesting going back to one of my older fanfictions and rewriting it so that it was up to my current writing standards. It was fun and it was a neat little project for me to do. It took longer than I really wanted to take. But hey, real life and other drama gets in the way. So does writer's block.

Even though I am tempted to rewrite my other older fanfictions (especially "Springtime at Disneyland" and "Christmastime at Tokyo Disneyland", I'm not going to for many reasons. One, I can't spare the time to do those rewrites. Two, I feel as if it's better to leave them alone so that people can see how much I have grown as a writer. Three, I need to get back to the fanfictions I'm currently working on.

"But wait!" someone tells me. "What about "Ninja Love 2?" I mean, since you rewrote this story, you HAVE to rewrite that one, right?"

Well, true, I can improve a few things in "Ninja Love 2." However, I'm not going to, for the same reasons as I listed above. I don't want to take eight years to rewrite the ENTIRE 50 CHAPTER STORY when I have other fanfictions I want to work on. Plus, I feel as if "Ninja Love 2" perfectly shows my progression as a writer, especially since it took me two years to write that one. While the beginning chapters are horribly written and the characterization is very off, at the end, I felt like my writing style improved just a bit during those two years and fifty chapters. Messing with it just doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

So yeah, despite some continuity problems I have created rewriting "Ninja Love," I'm going to leave the sequel alone so that everyone can enjoy its unaltered glory.

Thank you all so much for your support and kind words. Keep checking my profile for my next fanfiction!

I'm out!


	13. Important Annoucement!

"Ninja Love"  
by MisterAnimeFan

Hey everybody, this is MisterAnimeFan here (formerly know as narutofreak14), here with another new fanfiction from yours truly! "Ninja Love" was one of my first fanfictions ever on fanfiction dot net. It told the story of Naruto and his friends going to Disneyland. It's amazing that this story is three years old! Looking back, I definitely improved on my writing skills.

So, I decided to go back and sort of redo the story. The main storyline is still there, but I'm just going back and filling in plotholes of the story, fix grammar and spelling mistakes and maybe add a few rides.

I already rewrote the first chapter, so I hope you guys enjoyed it! In the next chapters, I'll add some attractions that weren't around back in 2006 (such as Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and Toy Story Mania).

I don't know how often I'm going to add to this story, but it should be pretty often since I only have to change up a few things here and there!


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